Chennai, Mar 3 (IANS): Actor Satyam Rajesh, who has mostly played comic roles in his decade-long career, stunned everybody when he donned khaki and played a no-nonsense character in Telugu suspense drama "Kshanam".

"I've worked in about 350 films. Never did I imagine I could play such a character. In fact, nobody believed that I was capable of playing such a serious role. 'Kshanam' has changed all that for me and has given me the confidence to experiment," Satyam told IANS.

When he was approached for the project, he assumed he was expected to play the hero's friend.

"When Sesh (writer) told me I have to play a cop, I wasn't sure if he was serious, because I was mentally prepared to play the hero's friend. But when I heard the story, I was so thrilled," he said, adding that the makers had originally planned to approach actor Sampath Raj for the same role.

Since the release of "Kshanam", Satyam has been inundated with appreciation calls.

"People who called me were surprised that I could play such a character. Some of them liked my performance so much that they told me the industry has finally found another talented character artist," he said, and added that a very popular producer has offered him villain's role.

"I haven't signed the project yet, but I'm definitely considering it. When I told the producer that I wasn't quite sure if I can play a villain, he told me not to underestimate my talent. It really felt nice," he added.

For his role, Satyam worked hard to do full justice.

"I had to practice walking, look macho and pump my chest. As a comedian, audiences were familiar with my body language. I had to change all that so that people take me seriously and not feel I was miscast," he said.

The success of "Kshanam" might not change many things for Satyam, who says he will continue doing comic and other type of roles, but will get a little choosy.