In 1998, Upendra directed "A", through which he made a successful transition to acting. 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. The film had a 175-day run in Karnataka was also dubbed to Telugu, and repeated its success in Andhra Pradesh too, where it had a 100-day run. The film won accolades from Bollywood personalities like Amitabh Bachchan and Anil Kapoor. Upendra was now a big name in Kannada cinema and was also popular in Andhra Pradesh.