Gopynathan Velayudhan Nair (2 November 1937 – 29 January 2008), popularly known by the

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Bharat Gopy, was an Indian actor, producer, and director. Considered one of the greatest actors in the history of

Indian cinema The cinema of India, consisting of motion pictures made by the Indian film industry, has had a large effect on world cinema since the second half of the 20th century. Indian cinema is made up of various film industries, each focused on p ...

, Gopy was one of the first actors to be associated with the New Wave cinema movement in

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

during the 1970s. Bharat Gopy has won many awards, including the

National Film Award The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...

for Best Actor for his role as Sankarankutty in '' Kodiyettam'' (1977), and hence he got the name Bharath. His well-known roles include Aiyappan in '' Yavanika'', Vasu Menon in ''Palangal'', Prof. "Shakespeare" Krishna Pillai in '' Kattathe Kilikoodu'', Dushasana Kurup in '' Panchavadi Palam'', Nandagopal in '' Ormakkayi'', Mammachan in '' Adaminte Vaariyellu'', Shankaran in '' Chidambaram'', and Krishnan Raju in ''Aghaat''. He won four Kerala State Film Awards for Best Actor for various roles. As a filmmaker he is known for ''Ulsavapittennu'' (1989) and '' Yamanam'' (1991). He produced the 1993 film '' Padheyam'' directed by

Bharathan Bharathan Parameshwara Menon Palissery (14 November 1946 – 30 July 1998) Known mononymously Bharathan was an Indian people, Indian film maker, artist, and art director. Bharathan is noted for being the founder of a new school of film ma ...

. In 1991 the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

honoured him with the

Padma Shri The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...

for his contributions towards the arts. In 1994, he authored the book ''Abhinayam Anubhavam'', which won the

National Film Award for Best Book on Cinema The National Film Award for Best Book on Cinema is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It is one of several awards ...

Early life and family

Bharat Gopy was born on 2 November 1937 at

Chirayinkeezhu Chirayinkeezhu is a town in the Thiruvananthapuram district in the Indian state of Kerala. It was also the hometown of famous Malayalam film actor Prem Nazir. It is the seat of Chirayinkeezhu taluk. Anjengo Fort The well known Anjengo Fort ( ...

Thiruvananthapuram District Thiruvananthapuram District () is the List of districts of Kerala, southernmost district in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. The district was created in 1949, with its headquarters in the city of Thiruvananth ...

of the state of Kerala as the youngest of four children to Kochuveetil Velayudhan Pillai and Parvathyamma. He completed his BSc. Degree from University College, Thiruvananthapuram. Immediately after his studies, he was employed as Lower Division Clerk in the Kerala Electricity Board. He is married to Jayalakshmy S. V. The couple has a son, writer-actor Murali Gopy, and a daughter, Dr. Minu Gopy.

Career

Stage actor

Gopy began his acting career as a theatre actor at Prasadhana Little Theatres under G. Sankara Pillai. His first stage appearance was in the role of Raaghavan in the play ''Abhayarthikal''. Later on, he became associated with Thiruvarange under Kaavalam Narayana Panicker. He has also written five plays and directed three.

Film actor

Gopy became interested in cinema through the Chitralekha Film Society, founded by

Adoor Gopalakrishnan Adoor Gopalakrishnan (born 3 July 1941) is an Indian film director, script writer, and producer and is regarded as one of the most notable and renowned filmmakers in India. With the release of his first feature film '' Swayamvaram'' (1972), G ...

. He made his movie debut in Adoor's '' Swayamvaram'' in 1972 in a small role. He did the lead role of Sankarankutty in Adoor's next film, '' Kodiyettam'' (1977), a performance for which he won the National Award for Best Actor."Malayalam actor Bharat Gopy dies at 71"
''Hindustan Times''. 29 January 2008. Retrieved 27 April 2023. He was also noted for his performances in movies like '' Ormakkayi'', '' Yavanika'', '' Panchavadi Palam'' and '' Adaminte Vaariyellu''. Besides Malayalam movies, he acted in two

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

movies, ''Aaghat'' and '' Satah Se Uthata Aadmi''. Gopy was a film director and producer as well. Gopy was paralysed by a stroke on 20 February 1986, at the zenith of his career. He was awarded the

in 1991. In 1979, Gopy directed the movie '' Njattadi'' with Murali in lead role. The movie was only screened twice and the print is now lost. He directed three more movies ''Ulsavapittennu'', '' Yamanam'' and ''Ente Hridhayathinte Utama''. His '' Yamanam'', about a physically disabled person, was awarded Best Film on social issues by the National Award Jury in 1991. On 24 January 2008, Gopy was hospitalised with chest pain. He died five days later following a cardiac arrest. His last role was in

Balachandra Menon Balachandra Menon (born 11 January 1954) is an Indian actor, director and script writer. He made a number of films in the Malayalam films of the 1980s, 1980s and Malayalam films of the 1990s, 1990s. He has directed 40 films and has acted in o ...

's '' De Ingottu Nokkiye'' (2008).

Author

Gopy authored two books. His book ''Abhinayam Anubhavam'' (Acting, Experience), won the

in 1994. In 2003, ''Nataka Niyogam'', his book on drama won the Kerala State Drama Awards for Best Book on Drama.

Filmography

Actor

Director

Producer

Awards

International awards and honours

* Special Jury Award at the Asia Pacific International Film Festival, Tokyo (1985) * A five-film retrospective of his films was held in Paris by the Government of France (1985). The only other Indian actors to be awarded this honour are

Smita Patil Smita Patil (17 October 1955 – 13 December 1986) was an Indian actress who primarily worked in Hindi and Marathi language, Marathi films. Regarded among the greatest and finest actresses in the history of Indian cinema, she was known for her ...

Naseeruddin Shah Naseeruddin Shah (born 20 July 1950) is an Indian actor. He was notable in Indian parallel cinema and has starred in various international productions. He has won numerous awards in his career, including three National Film Awards, three Filmfa ...

Om Puri Om Prakash Puri, (18 October 1950 – 6 January 2017) was an Indian actor who appeared in mainstream commercial Hindi films as well as Urdu, Malayalam, Bengali, Kannada, English, Punjabi, Gujarati, Telugu, and Marathi films, as well as ind ...

Rajesh Khanna Rajesh Khanna (; born Jatin Khanna; 29 December 1942 – 18 July 2012) was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who worked in Hindi films. Considered as one of the greatest and most successful actors in the history of Indian cinema, h ...

and

Amitabh Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan (; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema. He is often considered one of the greatest, most accomplished and commercially successful actors in the history of Indian cinema.* * * * * With a cinemati ...

Civilian awards

– 1991

National Film Awards

* Best Actor – '' Kodiyettam'' – 1977 * Best Film on Other Social Issues – '' Yamanam'' – 1991 * Best Book on Cinema – ''Abhinayam Anubhavam'' – 1995

V. Shantaram Award

* Best Film Award – '' Padheyam'' – 1993 (as producer)

Kerala State Film Awards

* Best Actor – '' Kodiyettam'' – 1977 * Best Actor – '' Ormakkayi'' – 1982 * Best Actor – '' Ente Mamattikkuttiyammakku'', ''Eenam'', ''Ettillam'', '' Kattathe Kilikoodu'' – 1983 * Best Actor – '' Chidambaram'' – 1985

Filmfare Awards

* 1982 – Best Actor – '' Ormakkayi'' * 1983 - Best Actor - ''

Kattathe Kilikkoodu ''Kattathe Kilikkoodu'' () is a 1983 Indian Malayalam-language drama film directed by Bharathan and written by T. Damodaran from a story by Nedumudi Venu. The film was produced by P. V. Gangadharan and stars Bharat Gopy, Mohanlal, Srividya ...

Other awards

* 1994 – Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship * Four critics awards * Two Gulf Malayali association awards

References

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20160304040405/http://en.msidb.org/displayProfile.php?category=actors&artist=Bharath%20Gopy&limit=74 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gopy, Bharath Film directors from Thiruvananthapuram Male actors from Thiruvananthapuram Kerala State Film Award winners 2008 deaths 1937 births Male actors in Malayalam cinema Filmfare Awards South winners Malayalam film directors Best Actor National Film Award winners 20th-century Indian male actors Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts Indian male film actors Film producers from Thiruvananthapuram 21st-century Indian male actors 21st-century Indian people Directors who won the Best Film on Other Social Issues National Film Award Recipients of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship Kerala Film Critics Awards winners