Upendra (actor)

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Upendra
Upendra at KLE Society's Law-College, Bangalore 2.jpg
Upendra at KLE Society's Law-College
Born
Upendra

Koteshwara, Kundapura, Karnataka State, India
Other namesUppi, Real Star
Occupation(s) Actor, director, film producer, lyricist, screenwriter, singer, politician
Political party Uttama Prajaakeeya Party
Spouse
​
(m. 2003)​
Children2

Upendra (born 18 September 1968) is an Indian actor, filmmaker, producer, screenwriter and politician who worked primarily in Kannada films. He has also worked in a few Telugu films. He is one of the best director and first Indian movie director to be listed in the IMDb list of top 50 best director of world since 2017. Upendra was known for his thematic representation of Indian politics and society in his films. In 2017, He joined the political party Karnataka Pragnyavanta Janata Paksha, [1] [2] before quitting the party in 2018 due to internal differences and formed another party named Uttama Prajaakeeya Party (UPP), which was based on principles of citizen-centric administration. He received an Honorary Doctorate from Angkor University in 2015. [3]

Contents

He started his film career as a writer and an assistant director with actor and film director Kashinath. His first directorial venture was Tharle Nan Maga (1992). In the mid-1990s, Upendra directed Om (1995) which emerged as a blockbuster at the box office and became a cult film. He later made the film in Telugu as Omkaram. This was followed by A , in which he debuted as an actor. The film went to be a major success and catapulted him to new heights of fame. [4] His next film was the psychological thriller Upendra (1999), which became a cult film. [5] After a decade of acting, [6] he returned to directing with Super, which was well-received critically and commercially. [7]

Upendra is known for his works in films such as Preethse (2000), Super Star (2002), Kutumba (2002), Gokarna (2002), Hollywood (2002), Raktha Kanneeru (2003), Gowramma (2005), Aishwarya (2006), Anatharu (2007), Budhivanta (2008), Kalpana (2012), Godfather (2012), S/O Satyamurthy (2015), Uppi 2 (2015), and I Love You (2019).

Early life

Upendra was born to Manjunath Rao and Anusuya in Bengaluru, on 18 September 1968. His father was from Thekkatte, Koteshwara, Kundapur Taluk, Udupi district in Karnataka, formerly Mysore State. He is the second son of his family; his older brother is Sudheendra Rao. Rao's family was poor. As a baby, he had an eye problem, the result of which can be seen when he rolls his eyeballs in many film sequences. He obtained his Bachelor of Commerce degree from APS College of Commerce, Bangalore. During his time at the college, he participated in plays and often formed troupes with his friends. His association with actor and director Kashinath, a distant relative of his, began during his final year in college. [8]

Film career

As a director

Upendra assisted filmmaker Kashinath in various departments apart from assisting in writing songs, dialogues, and screenplay for his films. He co-directed a film with Kashinath. [9] Upendra started as a director with a typical Kashinath style comedy called Tharle Nan Maga in 1992. The film introduced famed comedian Jaggesh. It went on to be a success and has since achieved a cult following. [10] Upendra directed a horror suspense thriller next called Shhh! in 1993. The film featured Kashinath and a young producer and actor, Kumar Govind. The film was a major box office success, and Upendra came out as an independent director. [11]

Upendra's next film was a crime drama titled Om, (1995), which he wrote after being inspired by a real incident in the 1980s. Shiva Rajkumar played a gangster, Sathya, alongside other real-life gangsters who appeared in cameos. Prema played the female lead. The film's unique story-telling in the form of multiple flashback sequences supporting the plotline won critical praise and was also a major commercial success. This film too went on to attain cult status among Kannada audiences. [12]

Upendra turned towards a project to direct an extended version of the 1981 film Antha and called it Operation Antha . The film had Ambareesh reprise his role from Antha as Kanwar Lal. The film was not very successful; it was also controversial for its taunts on some real-life political figures. [13]

In 1997, Upendra directed A , through which he made a successful transition to acting. [13] The film is about a love affair between a film director and an actress, in which the actress rejects the director, causing him to become an alcoholic. It further led to the discovery of conspiracies on a reshoot by the director, who vowed revenge. [14] There were rumors that it was Upendra's own story, and the actress in the film portrayed his protege Prema. This added to the film's popularity and it broke many box office records upon release and went on to become one of the highest grossing Kannada films of its time. [15] The film had a 175-day run in Karnataka [13] was also dubbed to Telugu, and repeated its success in Andhra Pradesh too, where it had a 100-day run. [16] The film won accolades from Bollywood personalities like Amitabh Bachchan and Anil Kapoor. [13] Upendra was now a big name in Kannada cinema and was also popular in Andhra Pradesh. [13] [17]

Upendra's next movie was Swasthik with lead Raghavendra Rajkumar, which was released in 1998. The film performed averagely at the box office but critically well received. [13] [18]

In 1999, Upendra made a self-titled film, Upendra . Upendra acted in this film as the unnamed protagonist (or antagonist) Naanu (I or Myself). The film starred three heroines: Damini, Prema, and Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon. Naanu was an arrogant character and was very demeaning towards women, bordering on misogyny; which led to a lot of criticism on the film. [13] However, the film broke many box office records and went on to be a much bigger hit than A in both Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. [13] The film had a 200-day run in Karnataka, [19] and its Telugu version had a 100-day run in Andhra Pradesh. [16] Upendra was now not only a remarkably successful director, but also a big star with a large fan base in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. [13] [17] [20] Since then, Upendra gave up directing and concentrated more on his acting career.

Upendra came back as a director after 10 years in 2010 with the movie Super . The movie was released in a record number of theatres all over Karnataka, [21] was dubbed in Telugu, and released in Andhra Pradesh. Super was a blockbuster, [13] breaking many box office records upon release and had a 175-day theatrical run, becoming one of the highest-grossing and critically acclaimed Kannada films of 2010. [22]

In 2011, Tamil actor Rajinikanth attended a private screening of Super in Bangalore. Rajinikanth watched the film along with Upendra and a couple of friends. "Upendra is a great actor and director. There is hardly anyone in Indian Cinema, who would think like him. Only he can think like that. I like watching Upendra's films, and this was no exception. If I get an opportunity and an impressive script, I'd like to act in a Upendra film in the future," said Rajini. [23] [24]

Film director Shashank, Upendra in 2019 Shanshank, Upendra 2.jpg
Film director Shashank, Upendra in 2019

In 2015, Upendra directed and starred in a sequel to his 1999 film Upendra, titled Uppi 2 . [25] As it was a sequel to Upendra and his comeback as a director after 5 years, expectations and the resulting hype was high before it released. [26] [27] [28] The film was simultaneously released in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and the US in over 600 theaters. [29] Upon release, the film set records for the highest grossing opening day for a Kannada movie. [30] [31] Although the film got mixed responses because of its confusing storyline and screenplay, it was commercially successful and profitable with a 50-day theatrical run. [32] It sold the second-highest number of tickets in online ticket sales on Bookmyshow among Kannada movies in 2015. [33] It was also successful outside of India and became the second-highest-grossing Kannada film of all time in US. [34]

On 3 June 2022, 7 years after Uppi 2, Upendra launched his next directorial, UI .

Acting career

Cameo appearances

Upendra first appeared on screen making an appearance in Kashinath's 1989 comedy film, Anantana Avantara . He appeared as Lord Kamadeva in the song "Come On Come On Kaamanna". In Ajagajantara , also directed by Kashinath, he made a cameo appearance. In his directorial debut, Shhh! (1993), Upendra made another cameo appearance, like a mad man in the attire of a police officer barging into a film set. In his 1995 directorial Operation Antha , he appears as a man urinating on a roadside wall and explains of India's ways to a complaining Mandakini (played by Sangeetha).

1998–2005

From 1998 to 2005, Upendra starred in eight 100 days hits in eight years, such as A , Upendra , Preethse , Kutumba , Raktha Kanneeru , Gokarna , Gowramma and Auto Shankar . [13] [35]

In 1998, Upendra directed and starred in A, which was his fifth film as a director but his first lead role as a hero. The film had a 175-day run [19] and became a trend-setting blockbuster in Karnataka, [13] with its Telugu dubbed version running for 100 days in Andhra Pradesh. [16] Around this time, he received an offer from Amitabh Bachchan Corporation to make a film for them, which did not materialize. [36] Due to Upendra's newly found popularity in Telugu, Telugu director E. V. V. Satyanarayana cast him in the 1998 Telugu film Kanyadanam alongside Srikanth and Rachana, which also became a commercial success. [37] In 1999 Upendra again directed and starred in his self-titled film Upendra which starred Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon. The film went on to become a bigger hit than A, both in Karnataka as well as in Andhra Pradesh. [13] The film had a 200 days run in Karnataka [19] and 100 days run in Andhra Pradesh. [16] In 2000, Upendra starred opposite Bollywood actress Sonali Bendre in the psychological thriller Preethse which was a remake of Bollywood film Darr . Preethse became Upendra's third consecutive blockbuster [13] that ran for 175 days. [38] With three back-to-back highly received films, Upendra became well known in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. [13] Due to the success of the Telugu dubbed versions of his Kannada films and Kanyadanam, he starred in the Telugu films Oke Maata , Raa and Neethone Vuntanu . Raa was a typical Upendra style film in which he plays a womanizing playboy. Upendra starred opposite his future wife Priyanka Trivedi for the first time in this film. While Raa written by him was a box office success, [39] [40] the other two films were box office failures causing Upendra to take a break from straight Telugu films. [41]

In 2002, Upendra acted in less-received films such as H2O , Super Star , Hollywood , Nagarahavu and Naanu Naane for not meeting expectations and having average run at the box office. [13] [42]

From 2003 to 2005 he starred in 5 back-to-back films that each ran for 100 days such as Kutumba, Raktha Kanneeru, Gokarna, Gowramma, and Auto Shankar; all of which were well received at the box office. [13] Only two films of Upendra in this time were received poorly: Omkara and News. [13]

2006–2009

Upendra had a less successful phase from 2006 to 2009, as most of his films during this period went unnoticed at the box office such as Uppi Dada M.B.B.S. , Tandege Takka Maga, Parodi , Masti , Toss (Telugu), Lava Kusha , Sathyam (Tamil), Dubai Babu and Rajini. [13] [43] [44]

The only commercial well-received films he acted in during this period were the candy floss romantic comedy Aishwarya , which ran for 75 days, [45] and the moderately successful Anatharu which ran for 70 days. [13] Upendra received praise and critical acclaim for his performance in Anatharu.

Budhivanta, which was Upendra's only release in 2008, was considered as his big comeback. The film was declared a blockbuster [46] and ran for 100 days; [47] it became the top box office grosser of the year. [48] Budhivanta's Telugu dub was also well-received and ran for 50 days in Andhra Pradesh. [16]

2010–present

Upendra with a fan on stage during his visit to KLE Society's Law College, Bangalore, in 2019 Upendra at KLE Society's Law-College, Bangalore 6.jpg
Upendra with a fan on stage during his visit to KLE Society's Law College, Bangalore, in 2019

2010 marked Upendra's comeback to directing after 10 years. After several ups and downs in his acting career, Upendra came back to direct and act in the 2010 film Super in which he starred alongside Tamil actress Nayantara and Tulip Joshi. The movie was released in a record number of theatres all over Karnataka [49] and was also dubbed into Telugu and released in Andhra Pradesh. Super broke many box office records upon release and completing 175 days of the run, becoming one of the highest-grossing critically acclaimed Kannada films of 2010. [22]

Upendra then starred in films like Shrimathi (2011) opposite his wife Priyanka Trivedi and Bollywood actress Celina Jaitly, and Aarakshaka (2012). In 2012, Upendra starred in several commercially successful films such as 3D fantasy film Katari Veera Surasundarangi which was well-received [50] and became the second-highest-grossing film of the year, [51] followed by Godfather which performed above average, [50] and the horror-comedy film Kalpana which performed average at the box office. [50]

Upendra's films from 2013 to 2015 such as Topiwala (2013), Brahma (2014), Super Ranga (2014) and Shivam (2015) performed poorly in theatres. [13] [52] [53]

In 2015, Upendra starred alongside Allu Arjun in the Telugu film S/O Satyamurthy that was directed by Trivikram Srinivas. The film was declared a hit, grossing ₹92 crores and netting over ₹60 crores at the global box office, [54] becoming the seventh-highest-grossing Telugu film of all time worldwide. [55]

In 2016, Upendra starred in a sequel to his earlier hit horror film Kalpana titled as Kalpana 2 which became an average grosser at the box office. [56] He also starred along with Sudeep in the remake of Bollywood film OMG titled as Mukunda Murari, which became a box office success and had a 50-day run. [57]

In 2017, he starred in the remake of Soggade Chinni Nayana titled Upendra Matte Baa . In 2019, he starred in I Love You , which released to positive reviews.

In 2022, he starred in Home Minister and made a comeback to Telugu cinema with Ghani in a brief role portraying Varun Tej's father.

In 2023, he starred in Kabzaa , which had a similar theme to the KGF series. The film was a box office failure.[ citation needed ]

Upcoming projects

His upcoming films include UI and Buddhivantha-2. [58]

Political career

Upendra promoting his political party 'Uttama Prajaakeeya Party' Upendra (05).jpg
Upendra promoting his political party ′Uttama Prajaakeeya Party′

He started the political party Uttama Prajaakeeya Party in 2018, under the concept of "Prajaakeeya"—which represents the workers. Although he has strictly kept himself away from contesting in any elections, UPP had candidates across all the constituencies in Karnataka in the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections. [59] [60]

Craft and style

Upendra's films have been praised and criticized for their unusual plotlines and screenplay. [61] During a radio interview, Upendra expressed his disappointment at being labeled as a "different director" and explained that most of his directorial ventures deal with the things that he had undergone in his real life. [62] He said, in regards to his non-linear narrative, that "when one wants to capture the upheavals in one's mind, it becomes a jumble. Our mind is like that, always confused." [63]

The subject of the films coupled with Uppi's novel approach made headlines for mixed reasons. Upendra added that in his self-titled film he explored human nature which "ended with “Aham Brahmaasmi", where I wanted to say rise above I." [64]

Personal life

Family

On 14 December 2003, Upendra married actress and former Miss Kolkata Priyanka Trivedi, who first starred opposite him in the Telugu movie Raa and then in H2O . Upendra and his family now resides in Bangaluru.

Endorsements

Upendra has endorsed a number of brands. [65] Upendra has been the brand ambassador of the United Breweries, Lunars Footwear, SK Super TMT, Royal Challengers Bangalore (replaced by Puneeth Rajkumar in IPL 3), Mavalli Tiffin Room (MTR), Bangalore Electricity Supply Company, Emani Navaratna Brand, Karnataka Milk Federation (Nandini), Udayavani News Daily. [65]

Filmography

Awards and nominations

YearFilmAwardCategoryResultRef.
1999 A Udaya Film Awards Best Male ActorWon [66]
Best DirectorNominated
46th Filmfare Awards South Best Director Nominated [67]
2000 Upendra 47th Filmfare Awards South Best Director Won [68]
Best Film Won
2003 Nagarahavu Udaya Film Awards Best Male ActorWon [66]
50th Filmfare Awards South Best Actor Nominated [66]
2004 Raktha Kanneeru Hello Gandhinagara Awards 2004Best ActorWon [69]
Hello Gandhinagara Awards 2004Best DialogueWon
51st Filmfare Awards South Best Actor Nominated [70]
2008 Anatharu Suvarna Film Awards Special Award For PerformanceWon [71]
55th Filmfare Awards South Best Actor Nominated [72]
Udaya Film Awards Best Male ActorNominated [73]
2009 Budhivanta 56th Filmfare Awards South Best Actor Nominated [74]
2011 Super Udaya Film Awards Best ScreenplayWon [73]
Best DirectorNominated
Best Male ActorNominated
Suvarna Film Awards Favorite Director AwardWon [75]
Favorite FilmWon
58th Filmfare Awards South Best Director Nominated [76]
Best Actor Nominated
Best Playback Singer- Male for "Sikka Patte"Nominated
2012 Karnataka State Film Awards Karnataka State Film Award for Best Director Won [77]
Karnataka State Film Awards Karnataka State Film Award for Best Film Won
2012 Shrimathi 1st SIIMA Awards Special Appreciation AwardWon [78]
2013 Kalpana Udaya Film Awards Best Male ActorWon [79]
Suvarna Film Awards Best Male ActorNominated
2013 Katariveera Surasundarangi 2nd SIIMA Award Critics Award for Best ActorWon [80]
2013 Godfather Bangalore Times Film AwardsBest Male Actor in a Negative RoleNominated
2014 Topiwala 3rd SIIMA Awards Best ActorNominated [80]
2016 S/O Satyamurthy 5th SIIMA Awards Best Actor in a Supporting RoleNominated [81]
2016 Uppi 2 5th SIIMA Awards Best FilmNominated [82]
Best DirectorWon
Best ActorNominated
Other honours

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prema (Kannada actress)</span> Indian actress

Neravanda Chetticha Prema is an Indian actress known for her work predominantly in Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, and a few Tamil language films. She ruled Kannada industry in the 90s and early 20s and she has appeared in many commercially successful feature films. She was a leading Kannada actress at the turn of the century and has received the Karnataka State Film Award and Filmfare Best Actress awards for her performances in Kannada films. She has featured in Om and Yajamana, which are the two major blockbuster and highest-grossing films of their time in Kannada cinema. After an eight-year hiatus, she returned to films with Upendra Matte Baa in 2017.

<i>Raktha Kanneeru</i> 2003 film by Sadhu Kokila

Raktha Kanneeru is a 2003 Indian Kannada-language film directed by Sadhu Kokila, starring Upendra and Ramya Krishna. The film was produced by Munirathna and was later dubbed in Telugu. The screenplay and dialogues of the film were written by Upendra and the music was composed by Sadhu Kokila.

<i>Buddhivantha</i> 2008 Indian film

Buddhivantha is a 2008 Indian Kannada-language film directed by Ramnath Rigvedhi. starring Upendra in the lead role, while Pooja Gandhi, Brinda Parekh, Saloni Aswani, Natanya Singh, and Suman Ranganathan play the female leads. The film is a remake of the 2007 Tamil film Naan Avanillai, which was itself was a remake of 1974 Tamil movie Naan Avanillai which in turn was based on the 1962 Marathi play To Mee Navhech written by Pralhad K. Atre. The music was composed by Vijay Antony.

<i>A</i> (1998 Kannada film) 1998 Indian film

A is an 1998 Indian Kannada-language romantic psychological thriller film written and directed by Upendra. It stars Upendra in his acting debut and Chandini in the lead roles. The film revolves around a love story between a film director and an actress which is narrated through multiple flashbacks within flashbacks and reverse screenplay. It also explores about the dark truths like casting couch in the film industry. The soundtrack and background score were handled by Gurukiran in his debut film.

<i>Hollywood</i> (2002 film) 2002 Indian film

Hollywood is a 2002 Indian Kannada science fiction film written by Upendra and directed by Dinesh Babu. It stars Upendra in a triple role as Surendra, Upendra and US 47 along with the Australian actress Felicity Mason as Manisha and Anant Nag. The film was shot entirely in Gold Coast, Australia with few supporting actors and a monkey named Lakshmi, voiced by Ramesh Bhat. The film was also dubbed into Telugu in 2003, retaining the same title.

<i>Super</i> (2010 Indian film) 2010 Indian film

Super is a 2010 Indian Kannada-language political drama film written and directed by Upendra. The film was released on 3 December 2010 in its Kannada version, and on 11 March 2011 in its Telugu version, which had a few scenes reshot with Ali and Sadhu Kokila switching roles. This utopian film had a concept of a contrasting futuristic India set in the year 2030, and the contemporary image of India.

Tharle Nan Maga is a 1992 Indian Kannada-language comedy drama film written and directed by Upendra in his directorial debut, which stars Jaggesh and Anjali Sudhakar in lead roles, who also made their debuts in lead roles with the film. The film was reportedly based loosely on Jean-Paul Sartre's short story Erostasus. Upendra also made a cameo appearance in the film.

<i>Super Star</i> (2002 film) 2002 Indian film

Super Star is a 2002 Kannada film written by Upendra and directed by Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar, starring Upendra and Keerthi Reddy. Though initially it was started as a remake of the Hindi film Agnisakshi, the story was modified after the Nepalese royal massacre involving King Dipendra. The movie is noted for having four climaxes which the audience could select according to their mindset. All these climaxes were based on the thought process of the character Sigaev found in Anton Chekhov's 1887 short story An Avenger. As of 2021, this was Keerthi Reddy's only Kannada film. Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar had mentioned in an interview that, although he was credited as the director, he was not given much freedom on the sets and Upendra was the one who took decisions regarding the shoot of the movie. It was dubbed into Telugu as Stupid, which was a lot more successful than the Kannada version.

<i>Upendra</i> (film) 1999 Indian film

Upendra is a 1999 Indian Kannada-language thriller film written and directed by Upendra. It stars Upendra, Raveena Tandon, Prema and Damini. It is an allegorical film, which explores three human emotions through the relationship between the main character and the three heroines. The lyrics were written by Upendra and music was composed by Gurukiran. The film developed a cult fanbase, and is said that the director named it as Upendra with the thought that the name includes the names of the main characters of the film.

<i>Kalpana</i> (2012 film) 2012 film by Rama Narayanan

Kalpana is a 2012 Indian Kannada-language comedy horror film starring Upendra, Saikumar and Lakshmi Rai in the lead roles. Film maker Rama Narayanan directed and produced this movie under his banner Sri Thenaandal Films. The film is a remake of the 2011 Tamil film Kanchana. Saikumar reprises the role of a transgender Kalpana, originally played by Sarath Kumar in the Tamil version. Shruti and Umashri play supporting roles originally played by Devadarshini and Kovai Sarala.

<i>H<sub>2</sub>O</i> (2002 film) 2002 Indian Kannada-language film

H2O is a 2002 Indian Kannada-Tamil bilingual film directed by debutants N. Lokanath and Rajaram. The film's script was written by Upendra who stars in the lead role with Prabhu Deva, Priyanka Trivedi along with Babu Mohan, Sadhu Kokila and Bank Janardhan portraying supporting roles. The film was dubbed in Tamil as H2O Kaveri and was produced by Dhanraj under Dhanraj Films.

<i>Omkara</i> (2004 film) 2004 Indian film

Omkara is a 2004 Indian Kannada-language crime thriller film starring Upendra and Preeti Jhangiani. The film was written and directed by Shivamani and produced by Company Films under the banner of R. S. Productions and has music by Gurukiran. Omkara was Upendra's first gangster film and was based on the connection between film industries and the Mumbai underworld mafia. The film got an all-time record opening in its first week however became an above average grosser.

<i>Brahma</i> (2014 film) 2014 film by R. Chandru

Brahma is a 2014 Indian Kannada historical action drama film written and directed by R. Chandru, and produced by Manjunath Babu. The film was dubbed into Telugu. The film stars Upendra playing dual roles though both the roles never appear together onscreen. It also stars Pranitha Subhash and Sara Sharma, while actors Nassar, Rahul Dev, and Shayaji Shinde play other prominent roles. The film spanning four generations, from the 16th to the 21st century features an original soundtrack album by Gurukiran.

<i>S/O Satyamurthy</i> 2015 film by Trivikram Srinivas

S/O Satyamurthy is a 2015 Indian Telugu-language action drama film written and directed by Trivikram Srinivas and produced by S. Radha Krishna under Haarika & Haasine Creations. The film stars Allu Arjun, Upendra, Samantha, Nithya Menen, Sneha, and Adah Sharma while Rajendra Prasad, Sampath Raj, Rao Ramesh, Vennela Kishore, Ali, and Brahmanandam play supporting roles. Prakash Raj make a cameo appearance as Satyamurthy.

<i>Shankar Guru</i> (1978 film) 1978 film by V. Somashekhar

Shankar Guru is a 1978 Indian Kannada-language action thriller film directed by V. Somashekhar, written by Chi. Udayashankar and produced by Parvathamma Rajkumar under the banner of Dakshayini Combines. It stars Rajkumar in the lead role alongside Jayamala, Padmapriya, Kanchana, Balakrishna, Vajramuni, Thoogudeepa Srinivas and Uma Shivakumar in supporting roles. Rajkumar appears in a triple role in the film — as a father and his two sons separated in childhood.

<i>Super Ranga</i> 2014 Indian Kannada-language action comedy film

Super Ranga is a 2014 Indian Kannada-language action comedy film directed by Sadhu Kokila and produced by K. Manju under the banner K Manju Cinemaas. It stars Upendra and Kriti Kharbanda in lead roles. The supporting cast features Priyanka Rao, Raghu Mukherjee, Hema Chaudhary Doddanna, Rangayana Raghu, Bullet Prakash and Sridhar. The film is a remake of the 2009 Telugu film, Kick. The limited theater release may have contributed to the 35 days of its run with a one-week gap after completing four weeks.

<i>Uppi 2</i> 2015 film by Upendra

Uppi 2 is an 2015 Indian Kannada-language allegorical thriller film written and directed by Upendra, and produced by Priyanka Upendra. It is a sequel to the 1999 cult film Upendra. The film stars an ensemble cast featuring Upendra, Kristina Akheeva, Parul Yadav, Sayaji Shinde, Shobaraj, Satyajit, Bank Janardhan, Vaijanath Biradar and Mimicry Dayanand. The soundtrack and background score were composed by Gurukiran.

<i>Mukunda Murari</i> 2016 Indian film

Mukunda Murari is a 2016 Indian Kannada-language devotional satirical comedy drama film directed by Nanda Kishore. The film stars Upendra in an atheist role and Sudeepa playing the role of Lord Krishna, teaming up for the first time. The film, a remake of Hindi film OMG - Oh My God! (2012), which in turn was based on a Gujarati stage play Kanji Virrudh Kanji, is produced by M.N. Kumar along with B. Jayashree Devi. The rest of the cast includes Nikita Thukral, Ishita Vyas, Kaavya Shah, P. Ravishankar, Avinash among others. The film has cinematography by Sudhakar S. Raj. The soundtrack and film score are composed by Arjun Janya.

<i>Ajagajantara</i> 1991 Indian Kannada-language film

Ajagajantara is a 1991 Indian Kannada-language romantic black comedy film directed by Kashinath who himself stars in the film alongside Anjana and Sriraksha. Actor director Upendra did an extended cameo. The plot was loosely based on the 1988 novel Indecent Proposal which was adapted into 1993 American movie of the same name which inspired the 1994 Telugu movie Subhalagnam which in turn was remade in 1997 in Kannada again as Ganga Yamuna and also in Hindi as Judaai (1997).

References

  1. ↑ "Kannada film actor Upendra unveils name of his new political outfit". The Times of India. 31 October 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  2. ↑ "Karnataka Pragnavantha Janatha Paksha(KPJP)". The News Minute. 31 October 2017. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
  3. ↑ "ನಟ-ನಿರ್ದೇಶಕ ಉಪೇಂದ್ರಗೆ ಗೌರವ ಡಾಕ್ಟರೇಟ್".
  4. ↑ "This Day, That Year: Upendra's debut as hero, the cult classic 'A' turns 24". The Times of India. 23 January 2022. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  5. ↑ Desk, Roktim Rajpal,DH Web (18 September 2020). "Birthday special: 5 movies that prove Upendra is the 'Real Star' of Kannada cinema". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 21 November 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. ↑ "Excited Upendra on Tamil Film 'Sathyam'". IndiaGlitz. 14 June 2008. Archived from the original on 15 June 2008. Retrieved 3 April 2011.
  7. ↑ "Upendra Kannada Film Super Box Office Report, Collections". Cinemagupshup.com. 22 December 2010. Archived from the original on 22 December 2010.
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