Veteran Tamil director P. Vasu's forthcoming Kannada horror film Aaptha Rakshaka, starring Vishnuvardhan, Vimala Raman, Avinash, Lakshmi Gopalaswamy and Komal in the lead roles, is expected to grace screens in January 2010.

A sequel to P. Vasu's 2004 blockbuster Aptha Mithra (which was later remade in Tamil and Telugu as Chandramukhi, starring Rajinikanth, Nayantara, Jyotika and Prabhu in the lead roles), the film is currently in its post production stage.

"Aaptha Rakshaka is the first-ever Kannada film to be made with a huge budget of Rs. 8 crores. The complete climax will be brimming with computer-generated graphics and stunning visuals," P. Vasu revealed.

Vishnuvardhan said Aaptha Rakshaka could be described as a film that takes you back to the memories of  Aaptha Mithra. "You can call it a sequel or not as per your own interpretations of the film. The film will have two links with the original film. One is my own character and the other is that of Avinash. Other artists like Sreenivasa Murthy, Komal and Ramesh Bhat are the new links. The film has five lady lead characters, though all of them can not be termed as heroines," he added.