Apparently Shah Rukh Khan is yet to give the nod for Gautham Menon's next, thanks to Ekk Deewana Tha tanking at the box office. Thanks to the dismal figures that his recent release Ekk Deewana Tha marked at the box office, apparently now Gautham Menon's next film where he hoped to cast Shah Rukh Khan is paying the price.

Second thoughts? The director who has been keen to cast SRK in the remake of his Tamil superhit Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu is apparently still waiting for the actor to give the final nod. Says a source, "Earlier on reports were that Shah Rukh was in a state of dilemma over the remake of two South films.

One was Ramanna with AR Murgadoss and the second was Kamal Haasan's Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu. But now that Gautham's film hasn't done so well, he is a little sceptical. Murgadoss has delivered one of Bollywood's biggest hits, Ghajini and that itself is reason enough for SRK to sign his film."

Khan vs Khan Menon however apparently remains positive about signing on at least one of the Khans, be it Salman or Shah Rukh. Adds the source, "Kamal Haasan who plays the lead in the Tamil film has been very vocal about the fact that he would like SRK to reprise his role. But Gautham is keeping his options open. Both the Khans have been extremely busy with their ongoing projects and so nothing can be finalised before a few months."

Larger than life So is the director willing to cast Saif Ali Khan, who also starred in the director's first Bollywood film, Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein which went on to become a hit? Menon however, seems quite confident about being able to rope in his current choices. He says, "It's the role of a daredevil cop who is not just defined by his work, but also the style in which he does it. It's quite a larger than life character and that's why it has to be played by one of the top Khans. The role requires that kind of reach and appeal. We are trying to work out the dates."