Apthamitra () is a 2004 Indian Kannada-language horror film directed by P. Vasu, and stars Vishnuvardhan, Soundarya and Ramesh Arvind in the lead roles with Prema, Dwarakish and Avinash in supporting roles. This was Soundarya's last film in her career which ended with two posthumous releases - the other being the Telugu movie Shiva Shankar which released few days before Apthamitra. The movie is a loosely based on the 1993 Malayalam classic film Manichithrathazhu with a few scenes borrowed from the 1997 Malayalam film Aaraam Thampuran. The film was released on 27 August 2004 to highly positive reviews. It ran for one year in the main theaters across Karnataka and was one of the highest-grossing films of the year. Apthamitra was later followed by its sequel, Aptharakshaka (2010). P. Vasu also remade the film in Tamil in 2005 as Chandramukhi with Rajinikanth and Jyothika in the leads. Late actress Soundarya is remembered for her performance in this film. Plot Ramesh and Ganga are a married couple who recently move into Mysore to buy an ancient palace, against the wishes of his uncles and family elders. His uncle agrees to reside with them with his two daughters Vani and Hema, on one condition that the room on the first floor which is locked and sealed should not be visited by anyone in the family. They have their caretaker Rangajja, who lives in the outhouse with his granddaughter Sowmya. During their stay in the house, they learn that this palace once belonged to Raja Vijaya Rajendra Bahaddur. He had a court dancer named Nagavalli from Andhra Pradesh, whom he was in love with. But Nagavalli already loved a fellow dancer named Ramanatha, who used to reside in a house just behind the palace. When the Raja discovered their affair on a Durgashtami day, he beheaded Dancer Ramanatha and burned Nagavalli alive. So Nagavalli vowed to burn the Raja alive on the very same Durgashtami day. Strange things start to happen in the palace and everyone suspects Sowmya, who is always found at the place of the incident. So, Ramesh calls in his psychiatrist friend Vijay to help him clear the misconceptions regarding the palace and its history. Ramesh's uncle is unhappy with the way Vijay functions and is suspicious of him. Vani, Ramesh's cousin is in love with an orphan-dance teacher, Mahadev who incidentally resides in the same house behind the palace.