Mumbai, Mar 24 (IANS): Filmmaker Sriram Raghavan wanted an A-level actress to cast opposite Saif in "Agent Vinod" and decided that Kareena would be the ideal choice to play the mysterious character in the action thriller that released Friday.

"A heroine's role should not be just to add glamour. There should be a specific character. So I made sure that I get an A-level actress (for 'Agent Vinod') and Kareena was our choice," Raghavan told IANS.

"Kareena has a mysterious character in the film and I definitely wanted a good actress for it. I love Kareena as an actress; so we just thought why not her," he added.

However, Raghavan was apprehensive about one thing regarding roping in Kareena for "Agent Vinod" as she would have to be cast opposite her real life beau Saif Ali Khan.

"The only worry was Saif and Kareena are a real life couple. So I didn't know if it will work or not. But I was convinced while making the film that they will justify the role," he said of his experience while making the action thriller, which hit the screens Friday.

"Agent Vinod" is Raghavan's only film which took him double the time that he usually takes to direct movie projects.

"It took three years to come up with this film. When we were writing the script, we let our imagination go wild. It's almost like I did two movies with 'Agent Vinod' because my other movies have taken 50 days to get made, but this film has taken 100 days," Raghavan said.

Raghavan is known to have directed thrillers like "Ek Hasina Thi" and "Johnny Gaddar". Now post-"Agent Vinod", he plans to step out of his comfort zone and experiment with different genres.

"It's not that I only want to make thrillers. But I have been partial to thriller films. If somebody has a good script, I would love to make a love story or a children's film.

"I like every genre except for out-and-out comedy. I am not good at it. The other things I will attempt for sure...like children's film, drama or a love story," he added.