Bollywood actor Nikhil Dwivedi, who is gearing up for the release of his upcoming erotic thriller "Hate Story", feels that the movie is India's first 'Basic Instinct'. Hate Story, produced by Vikram Bhatt and starring Paoli Dam in the lead role and is already creating a lot of buzz with it's explicit trailer. Nikhil says its in the lines of the Hollywood film starring Sharon Stone in terms of boldness.

"Had I not liked it I'd not have been part of it. First thing that came to my mind was, oh! it's a Basic Instinct in India. I thought, why not be a part of India's first erotic thriller? I have tried not to walk the trodden path. And this is an erotic thriller which is has been handled aesthetically," Nikhil told PTI. Directed by Vivek Agnihotri, the film also stars Gulshan Devaiah of Shaitan fame. It will hit the theatres on April 20.

"It (film) has pushed the envelope of depicting erotica or portraying sexuality in Indian films to the boundaries. I'm still gung-ho about the story and that is something the audience is going to look forward to. If the story is good they'll like else they may not. But, at the end of the day it's just a film," he said.

Nikhil, who made his Bollywood debut in 2008 with My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves, said he was initially offered the role of co-star Gulshan Devaiah but turned it down as he is too shy to do intimate scenes on-screen. "I was initially offered the exact opposite role, the one that Gulshan is playing now, the dark character. But, I have my own reservations as an actor, and I'm very shy doing intimate scenes, so I decided not to do that role," he added.

Although, the film might not go down well with some due to its steamy scenes, Nikhil feels that the Indian audience is mature enough to handle such a subject. "We as the biggest democracy are mature to elect our own government and not mature to handle such a theme in cinema? A-list stars of Hollywood have been part of films like Basic Instinct, Fatal Attraction or Original Sin with very sexually volatile scenes.

"But, the reasons they are so successful is because those scenes are so essential to the plot. Here, the audience might get shocked at the explicit nature of the film, but they will not say 'oh my god, why are they doing this?'," he said. Talking about her co-star Paoli, Nikhil said, "I think she is hungry and ambitious. It's been good working with her so far. I have not seen the whole film but I think she has tried giving her best."

The Shor in the City actor, who left a corporate career to pursue acting, says the risk was worth taking and he is enjoying the whole experience. "It has been rewarding from the day I stepped in front of the camera. I already have another film lined up, Tamanchey about two outlaws falling in love," Nikhil said.