[sowbug]

I once worked with someone who got visibly frustrated when people didn't stop in the hallways to listen to her lengthy response to the phatic "how are you?" expression. She treated it as a genuine question.

It was a weird hill to die on.

[noizejoy]

That can be cultural. In some places that phrase was typically only asked, if a truthful and lengthier response was desired.

If that wasn’t desired, the greeting would be more like “Good day” or “Hello”.