 |
Sunday, March 24, 2002 |
He’s ‘different’
Upendra is one actor-director whose movies are ‘different’. What is it that makes his movies different?
PRADEEP BELLAVE analyses
It does not often happen in the Southern film industry that a Star, especially of the new generation stays in news without a single release for a whole year and more! That's what has happened to Upendra, director and actor who seems to have a different thought to share on every subject that he takes up for film making.
After the runaway hits Preetse and Upendra, the latter literally looting the box-office through the length and breadth of the state and also dubbed into Telugu, Uppi (as he's christened in the industry) did not have a single release in year-2001.
Last year began for Uppi with a bang as producer Dhanraj achieved a sort of casting coup by signing Uppi along with rubber-man Prabhudeva for H2O, touted to be a one of the kind movie. Alas, for reasons yet to be made clear, production of the movie turned a languid affair and resulted in confrontation between Uppi and his producer, the latter first lodging a complaint with the Film Chamber and then breaking down in public while withdrawing the same! The film is almost ready and expected to hit the screen anytime now.
Uppi was completely not without releases though, as he had releases in Telugu with a couple of hits in Kanyadanam and Raa. The South Canara boy has come a long way since his first attempt at direction, a Jaggesh-starrer Tarle Nanmaga (1992) which was a success with the masses. He got noticed immediately after a ‘different’ offering of a murder mystery in Ussh! the title itself something not tried earlier.
Though Operation Antha (Part-II) did no good to his stock because of too much of violence and vulgar dialogues, he was soon all over the tinsel town with his brilliant portrayal in Om of a simple Brahmin boy-turned-rowdy who finally reforms himself. Om not only brought a new lease of life to actor Shivarajkumar but created enough ripples as real-life criminals wanted by the police acted in the film in a strict undercover operation! Apart from being a massive success, Uppi attracted Bollywood's attention so much that many of the film makers who saw Om appreciated it in glowing terms.
In the meanwhile came the movie A which not only had a unique title but also story-screenplay that was totally different from anything conventional. Uppi's publicity gang did a wonderful job of bringing out curious and at the same time strange-looking posters for A with a line that the movie was meant ‘Only for the intelligent’. Needless to say it again set the cash registers ringing!
The meteoric rise was such that ABCL, the once flagship company of Amitabh Bachchan, invited Uppi to do a film under its banner. It did not come through though for some reason. But it was no mean achievement, considering the fact that Kannada film industry is always beset with the problem of limited market and making news at Bollywood-level is something every Southy looks forward to.
Uppi's next work Upendra, again recognised for being ‘different’, however earned the wrath of many film pundits and quality cinema-seekers as it had too many suggestive dialogues and scenes. Even the Censor Board officials got the stick for being so biased as to allow such nonsense in the name of bitter truth.
Not the one to be easily cowed down, Uppi took things in his stride and laughed his way to the bank as Upendra became one of the biggest grossers in the history of Kannada films. He also wrote songs and sung in the movie under Gurukiran's baton.
A striking point about Uppi's movies has been the hard hitting dialogues delivered in an equally thunderous fashion and a screen play that keeps the interest of the audience alive.With a string of big budget movies such as H2O and Superstar ready for release and others like Naagarahaavu on floors, this year may well be Uppi's, if he continues to be ‘different’. Popularity rating of Uppi is so much that he's endorsing two products (for Udayavani newspaper and for Mallya's UB), a feat achieved by not many in the Kannada film industry.
With so many things happening to and by him, from bizarre to the brilliant, do we call him a moron or a monolith, difficult to be easily dismissed? Are his creations genius or just serendipitous? While strictly not falling for his on-screen histrionics, there is no doubt that filmgoers are looking forward to an offering directed in typical Upendra style that'd give them something different to ponder upon!
© Copyright, 1999 The Printers (Mysore)Ltd.
[E-mail to Editor] [Main Page..Text
Version] [Main Page..Graphic
Version]
