Bollywood star jokes about tiny Great Gatsby role

Indian Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan inn April 2012 Photo: AFP

Indian acting legend Amitabh Bachchan says you'll miss his Great Gatsby part as a criminal called Wolfsheim if you stop for a moment to rummage in your popcorn.

Indian acting legend Amitabh Bachchan has warned his millions of fans to keep their eyes peeled for his long-awaited Hollywood debut, otherwise they might miss it altogether.

The Bollywood veteran laughed off his brief cameo in the new adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's 1925 novel The Great Gatsby starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire and Carey Mulligan.

"I play (underworld criminal) Wolfsheim for about a few seconds... by the time you look down on your popcorn to pick another morsel, I'd be gone from the film," Bachchan joked on his blog this week.

Bachchan features prominently in the film's trailer, which was released today, but he advised his avid followers not to expect too much and brushed aside criticism he was too big for such a fleeting role.

"Before you all start punching me for my minuscule participation in the film, may I just say that it was more out of a friendly gesture, than a desire towards furthering my career," he said.

Bachchan, 69, has previously said he was not paid for taking the part, which he agreed to after Australian director and Bollywood admirer Baz Luhrmann visited India.

"It was a sheer delight to work with someone of such great genius as Baz Luhrmann and a host of co stars that have astronomical presence in the world of cinema," Bachchan wrote of the much-hyped 3D film.

Old Sport: Leonardo DiCaprio stars in a new film version of one of the all-time great novels, written by Scott Fitzgerald  Photo: XPUSMM; rex

Bachchan, known as the "Big B" to his millions of devoted fans, is the elder statesman of Hindi-language cinema, having starred in more than 150 films including in the 1970s hits "Sholay" (Sparks), "Deewaar" (Wall) and "Don".