He served as a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament of India from 2016 to 2022.[9] Additionally, he is also a philanthropist, social worker, and advocates for environmental protection.[10]
After his birth, Gopi's family moved to his father's house in Kollam where he was raised.[14] He has three younger brothers: Subhash Gopi and twins Sunil Gopi and Sanil Gopi.[7] His ancestral home (tharavad) is in Kollam city near Madannada,[15] and the Kollam Bharanikavu Devi Temple near Madannada, Pallimukku, is his ancestral family temple.[16]
Gopi attended Infant Jesus Anglo-Indian School in Kollam.[17] He then completed the bachelor's degree in Zoology, and a master's degree in English Literature from Fatima Mata National College in Kollam.[18][11][12]
Gopi made his debut as a child artist in 1965 by playing a brief role in Odayil Ninnu. Later, he made his debut as an adult in 1986 with an uncredited role in Niramulla Raavukal.[19][20] He gained attention through the minor role of a prospective groom in T. P. Balagopalan M. A. (1986). Gopi went on to play few antagonistic and numerous supporting roles throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was noted for his villain role in Irupatham Noottandu (1987). It was the highest grossing Malayalam movie of that time. He had a major supporting role as Harry in Oru CBI Diary Kurippu (1988). Gopi's comic role as sub-inspector Minnal Prathapan in Manu Uncle (1988) has over the years attained a cult status.[21][22] His portrayal of Dr. Narendran in Padmarajan's 1990 film Innale (1990) was critically acclaimed and is considered by fans and critics to be one of the best performances of his career.[23] He also gained appraisal for his portrayal of Aromal Chekavar in the 1989 drama Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha. He played another cameo comic role as Christopher Luke, a professional killer in Nagarangalil Chennu Raparkam (1989). His other notable films during the late 1980s include Bhoomiyile Rajakkanmar, New Delhi (1987), Moonnam Mura, 1921 (1988), Varnam, Douthyam, Nair Saab (1989). His notable films during the early 1990s includes In Harihar Nagar and Thoovalsparsham both released in 1990.[24][25]
1992–95: Breakthrough and stardom
After acting in more than 80 movies, Gopi finally got a breakthrough by playing the lead role in Shaji Kailas's Thalastaanam (1992), which was written by Renji Panicker.[8][17] Suresh established himself as a bankable star in Malayalam cinema through Ekalavyan (1993). This crime thriller was also written by Renji Panicker and directed by Shaji Kailas. The film was a major box office success and completed 150 days in theaters.[26] Shaji-Renji combination films turned Gopi into an overnight star in 1990s especially through police and army roles. In 1993 itself, he played the lead role in Mafia, another Shaji-Renji crime thriller which was very successful at box office. The same year, he played the role of Nakulan alongside Mohanlal and Shobhana in Fazil's psychological thriller Manichitrathazhu, which is considered one of the best Malayalam movies ever made.[27] He played the role of a NSG commando in Kashmeeram (1994), which was a commercial success. His 1994 film Commissioner, where he played the role of Bharath Chandran I.P.S, was a major commercial success in Kerala and pushed his superstardom to neighboring Telugu-speaking state where it was a box office success.[6]Commissioner is also treated as a cult classic film.[28] He played the role of a RAW officer in Highway (1995) which ran for more than 100 days in theatres.[29]
1996–2005: Further commercial successes
Gopi's high budget film Yuvathurki (1996) failed to create expected results at box office. The same year, he appeared in a different avatar by playing the role of a wildlife photographer in Rajaputran. It became one of the highest grossing Malayalam movies in 1996.[30]
Gopi's action thriller film Pathram (1999) directed by Joshiy was the highest grossing Malayalam movie in 1999.[35] The film, which ran over 275 days in theatres is also considered by many fans to be one of the best in his career. The same year he starred in another Joshiy action thriller Vazhunnor which was also a commercial hit. In 1999, two of his popular crime investigation thrillers Crime File and F. I. R came out. Both films were commercially successful.[36]
In 2000, Gopi starred in Mark Antony and Cover Story, an action film and a crime thriller. He played a lead role, with comic elements, in the comedy drama Thenkasipattanam (2000) alongside Lal. The film was one of the highest grossers at the box office and ran for more than 275 days in theatres.[37] Suresh Gopi played the lead role in Rajasenan's horror film Megasandesam (2001). His other notable movies in 2001 are the comedy drama Sundara Purushan and an investigation thriller Nariman. In 2003, he appeared in a lead role alongside Kunchacko Boban in Rajasenan's family drama Swapnam Kondu Thulabharam. In 2005, he did the lead role in Renji Panicker's Bharathchandran I.P.S., a sequel to the 1994 film Commissioner. The film was a major hit at the box office.[38] His performance is Makalkku (2005) was critically acclaimed.
2006–2015: Decline and hiatus
Gopi's fanbase slowly started to diminish during the mid-2000s with many of his movies released in 2006 becoming a failure at the box office.[39] This includes films such as Lanka, Rashtram, Pathaaka, Ashwaroodan, Bada Dosth and Smart City.[40] However, his legal thriller Chinthamani Kolacase directed by Shaji Kailas was a blockbuster at the box office in 2006.[41] Suresh Gopi played the lead role of a psychotic lawyer, who enforces the law in his style.[42]
Most of his movies released after Chinthamani Kolacase were failures at the box office. It includes movies such as Detective, Paranju Theeratha Visheshangal, Black Cat, Kichamani MBA and Time all of which released in 2007. The same year he had a special appearance in the science fiction film Bharathan Effect. His only commercially successful film in 2007 was the crime investigation thriller Nadiya Kollappetta Rathri. In 2008, Suresh Gopi did a lead role in the multi-starrer blockbuster Twenty:20. In 2009, he was praised for his role as Ramesh Menon in the anthology filmKerala Cafe in the segment Lalitham Hiranmayam.
In 2010, he played the role of a father seeking revenge upon those who raped his daughter in Janakan which earned him appreciation.[43] In 2011, he appeared in the multi-starrer film Christian Brothers. The same year, Gopi acted in the film Melvilasom which received wide critical acclaim upon its release.[44] Gopi reunited with Shaji Kailas and Renji Panicker in 2012 through The King & the Commissioner. In the film, which is a crossover of Commissioner (1994) and The King (1995), Suresh Gopi reprised his role as Bharathchandran I.P.S along with Mammootty reprising his role as Joseph Alex from The King.[45] He was praised for his role as Dr. Vijay Nambiar in Apothecary (2014). He was nominated for the Best Actor award at the Filmfare Awards South for his performance in the movie.[46] Gopi played the villain role in the Tamil film action thriller film I (2015).[47]My God (2015) was his last film before going to a 4-year hiatus from acting.
2020–present: Return after hiatus
In March 2019, he made a comeback announcement in acting by joining Vijay Antony starrer Tamil film Tamilarasan. The film was released in 2023 after getting delayed due to COVID-19 pandemic in India.[48] Gopi made his comeback in Malayalam cinema by playing a pivotal role in Varane Avashyamund in 2020, after a five year long hiatus. The movie also saw the reunion of Suresh Gopi and Shobana after a span of 15 years.[49] The movie was a major success at box office and was critically acclaimed. In June 2020, Tomichan Mulakuppadam announced to produce Suresh Gopi's 250th movie. The film titled as Ottakkomban would see Gopi playing the role of Kuruvachan.[50] On 14 February 2021, Gopi announced that he will be reuniting with director Joshiy for the film titled Paappan.[51] The film was a commercial success at the box office.[52] His other upcoming movie is Kaaval, an action thriller directed by Nithin Renji Panicker which would also feature Renji Panicker playing a pivotal role.[53] His 2023 crime thriller film Garudan was also a commercial success at the box office.[54]
In March 2024, he was announced as the BJP candidate from the Thrissur constituency for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He won the seat with a majority of over 74,000 votes, becoming the first BJP Lok Sabha MP from Kerala.[70][71][72][73] Of the seven assembly constituencies that make up the Thrissur Lok Sabha segment, Gopi was ahead in six, except Guruvayoor: Manalur by 8,013 votes, Ollur by 10,363 votes, Thrissur by 14,117 votes, Nattika by 13,945 votes, Irinjalakuda by 13,016 votes and Puthukad by 12,692 votes.[74] He was appointed as the Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, as well as the Minister of State for Tourism, in the third Modi ministry in June 2024.[75][76]
He is facing a pending criminal case that includes a charge related to a crime against women.[77]
Personal life
On 8 February 1990,[11] Gopi married Radhika Nair, the granddaughter of actress Aranmula Ponnamma. They have five children—Lakshmi Suresh, Gokul Suresh, Bhagya Suresh, Bhavni Suresh, and Madhav Suresh. Lakshmi died in a car accident while she was one-and-a-half years old.[78]Gokul Suresh is an actor in Malayalam cinema.[79][80] Gopi resides with family in Sasthamangalam, Thiruvananthapuram.[12][81]
