Upendra(I)

Upendra Rao, popularly known by his stage name Upendra is an Indian actor, producer, filmmaker, screenwriter, and politician who majorly works in the Kannada and Telugu film industries.

Rao started his career with his debut as a writer and an assistant director to Kashinath (an actor and film director) with the movie Tharle Nan Maga (1992). In the movie, he worked in various departments, from writing dialogues, songs and screenplay. The movie was a huge success and quickly became a cult favourite.

Rao also directed another successful movie with Kashinath and Kumar Govind called Shhh! (1993) when he came out as an independent director. Upendra then directed Om (1995) and A: Film by Upendra (1998), in which he also debuted as an actor.

Rao worked as an actor in Kannada and Telugu films for another decade before returning to directing. Some of his most prominent work includes Upendra (1999), Preethse (2000), Super Star (2002), Kutumba (2002), Gokarna (2003), Hollywood (2002), Raktha Kanneeru (2003), Gowramma (2005), Auto Shankar (2005), Aishwarya (2006), Anatharu (2007), Budhivanta (2008), Super (2010), Kalpana (2012), Godfather (2012), S/O Satyamurthy (2015), Uppi 2 (2015), I Love You (2019) and more.

Rao transitioned into acting via the movie A: Film by Upendra (1998). The movie was a huge success and quickly became one of the highest-grossing movies in the Kannada movie industry.

Rao also made a self-titled film Upendra (1999), that starred three heroines, including the famous Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon. The movie also was a huge success in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. It surpassed the success of the movie A: Film by Upendra (1998).

Rao experimented in Telugu cinema, where he participated in some lesser-known films, including Naanu Naane (2002), Hollywood (2002), Nagarahavu (2016), etc.

Rao made a comeback as a director with the movie Super (2010). The movie was a blockbuster and broke many records in theatres all over Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. It also had a long 175-day theatrical run in theatres. It was one of the highest-grossing Kannada films of that year.

Rao directed and acted in the sequel of his self-titled movie, Upendra (1999), titled Uppi 2 (2015). After its release, the movie set the record for the highest-grossing opening day for a Kannada movie.

Rao won the award for Best Male Actor for his role in A: Film by Upendra (1998) at the Udaya Film Awards. In 2000, he also won the award for Best Director for Upendra at the 47th Film Awards South. In 2003, Upendra again won Best Male actor at the Udaya Film Awards for his role in Nagarahavu (2016). In 2004, he won Best Actor and Best Dialogue for his movie Raktha Kanneeru (2003) at the Hello Gandhinagara Awards 2004.

In 2018, he started a political party Uttama Prajakeeya Party. His party represented 'Prajakeeya', meaning the workers. However, he never once contested any election.

Rao was also part of several endorsements. He was the brand ambassador for United Breweries, SK Super TMT, Lunars Footwear, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Emani Navaratna Brand, among others.