'Karthikeya' sequel to roll from next year

Actor Nikhil Siddhartha has confirmed that the sequel to his hit Telugu thriller "Karthikeya" is on the cards and it will go on floors next year.

"The sequel will start from where it was left off in 'Karthikeya'. We want to make this a genuine franchise and, hence, will avoid calling it 'Karthikeya 2'. We will retain the title 'Karthikeya' and will add a tagline to it," Nikhil told IANS.

Directed by Chandoo Mondeti, the film featured Nikhil and Swati Reddy in the lead. It revolved around the mysterious deaths of the people who tried to unravel some secrets about a closed temple.

Quoting the example of "Sherlock Holmes" franchise, he said, "This is the kind of franchise we want to build. Chandoo already has a wonderful script and we're confident that it will work and expand the franchise".

Nikhil, who is currently basking in the success of Telugu crime-comedy "Shankarabharanam", will start shooting for a yet-untitled fantasy drama in the language later this month.