Hrithik Roshan, who hasn't signed a single film after "Lakshya", is all set to sign on the dotted line for a sequel to the hit "Dhoom" with Aishwarya Rai -- as a villain!

It is the most sensational casting of the year. For a long time now, plans to cast Hrithik and Aishwarya together have gone kaput. But if all goes well, the two will be seen together in the Yash Chopra production very shortly.

The master-brain behind the project? Aditya Chopra, the man who also produced 2004's surprise blockbuster "Dhoom".

For the first time in his career, Hrithik will play a villain, albeit a very suave James Bond kind of bad-man wearing the best clothes and saying the most attractive lines heard on this side of Hannibal Lector in "The Silence Of The Lambs".

While the rest of the cast -- Abhishek Bachchan, Uday Chopra, Rimi Sen -- remain the same, the exclusion of villain John Abraham is a surprise in the sequel. John's svelte bad-man act in "Dhoom" was one of the USPs of the film.

So how come no John in "Dhoom 2"? Apparently, the villain had to be a different face and character. With Hrithik Roshan agreeing to slip into the diabolic role, "Dhoom 2" acquires an all-new dimension.

And if Aishwarya is cast opposite Hrithik as she's likely to, the unique pair will certainly create a "Dhoom" beyond the obvious. Some years ago, Tanuja Chandra wanted to cast the two together in a war epic. Very recently, Ash was a breath away from signing Rakesh Roshan's sequel to "Koi... Mil Gaya".

Well, if not in one sequel, then another would do just as well.