Raashii Khanna’s villainous turn in the web series Rudra - The Edge Of Darkness has not just startled viewers, but her too. The actor admits she had her share of apprehensions about how audiences may react to her avatar, considering how she’s mostly done goody-goody roles.

“My character was very grey. Even though you want to play other roles, the Indian milieu will judge you and they can really hate you. So somewhere inside me, I was like if they hate me, I will have to overcome it by probably making them love me in some [other] way,” she says.

The 31-year-old adds that taking up the role was definitely a risk, but something she was game to face. “It was very risky to play a girl like her, and enter the Hindi space with that character. I am quite a risk taker that way. I was waiting for a role like this. You get bored of playing the same pretty girl being loved, and not really making a mark, apart from love stories. It’s very rare that you get to play a character like mine...We, actors, are nothing without risks.” she asserts.

Set to be seen next alongside actor Shahid Kapoor in the upcoming web show directed by Raj and DK, as well as Yodha opposite actor Sidharth Malhotra, Khanna says the response to her performance in Rudra has not really sunk in.

“I am in Zen mode. I am constantly shooting, so I don’t think I have had the time to look at it. My family and friends are shocked. They have already seen me in South films, where I was always the girl-next-door, but suddenly they went, ‘Oh my God’ after seeing me as a vamp. It was great coming from them. Even while watching the show, I myself couldn’t believe I did that. That’s not who I am,” she says, adding, “The only way you can grow as an actor is by pushing boundaries. I am on the correct path. Even my directors in Yodha said that I look completely different.”