Having often played the good boy on small screen, popular TV star Gautam Rode says he agreed to be a part of "Aksar 2" as, unlike its first part, it is not a bold film.
"Aksar 2" is the sequel of the 2006 thriller which starred Emraan Hashmi, Udita Goswami and Dino Morea and had many bold scenes.
When asked if the sequel will be on the similar lines, Gautam told PTI, "It is not a bold film. It is not an erotic thriller. It is purely character driven...I've chosen the film because of that. I am not so comfortable with erotic genre as of now."
"Aksar 2", which also stars actress Zareen Khan, will be helmed by Anant Mahadevan who also directed the first installment.
The "Saraswatichandra" star says the team of the film doesn't want to promote it as an erotic thriller.
"That is why me, the director and the producers are all very particular about it. We will also be promoting it as a suspense film rather than going on the other side and calling it erotic thriller. There is nothing like that in the film," he said.
Gautam, who has worked in hit shows like "Maha Kumbh: Ek Rahasaya, Ek Kahani" and "Suryaputra Karn", will be seen playing an investment banker in the film.
The 39-year-old actor has already started shooting for the film, and says "Aksar 2" is not also a typical hero-heroine romantic movie.
"Zareen (Khan) is a good actress and a very good co-actor to work with. But it is not a romantic film, so it will not be on those lines which will have romantic scenes. Songs are there, but it is not a hero-heroine film. We all are playing strong characters," he said.
Gautam got a call from Mahadevan while he was working on
"Suryaputra Karn" and was immediately on board for the role after he read the script.
Now, the "Baa Bahu Aur Baby" actor, who earlier featured in films like "Annarth" and "Agyaat", is excited about his major leading role debut on the big screen.
"I am definitely excited that I am doing the film. But at the same time there is this thought in my head that this is just a character that I am playing.
"I need to now move on and play another character. I am happy to be doing something new after TV and working with such great producers and director. This is exciting for me," he said.
The actor, who has been in the TV industry for nearly two decades, will not completely quit the small screen to focus on his Bollywood career as he feels he owes a lot to the medium for teaching him the craft of acting.
"If you do TV, sign a proper daily soap, then you won't be able to do anything. To be very honest, I owe it all to TV, it has made me what I am today. I've learnt the craft from it. I'll never say good bye to TV.
"I belong there. I'll be doing something very soon but if you do TV you are not able to do anything else. I was doing back to back shows for four years...I am just waiting for good characters to happen to me," he added.
Gautam has, meanwhile, signed another film with the producers of "Aksar 2" which is in the pre-production stage.
