Biju Sopanam (born 4 January 1970) is an Indian television, theatre, and film actor. He is best known for portraying the character of Balachandran Thampi in the popular sitcom ''

Uppum Mulakum ''Uppum Mulakum'' () is an Indian Malayalam-language sitcom, that has been broadcast on Flowers since 14 December 2015. Created and directed by R. Unnikrishnan, the sitcom depicts the everyday life of Balachandran Thampi, his wife Neelima, and ...

'', broadcast on Flowers TV.' He made his movie debut by acting in a small role in the hit movie

Rajamanikyam ''Rajamanikyam'' is a 2005 Indian Malayalam-language action comedy film directed by Anwar Rasheed and written by T. A. Shahid. It stars Mammootty in the title role along with Rahman, Manoj K Jayan, Cochin Haneefa, Ranjith, Salim Kumar, Sai Kum ...

in the year 2005. He is a renowned Sanskrit Drama Artist and have performed in many stages across the country. He was trained under

Kavalam Narayana Panicker Kavalam Narayana Panicker (1 May 1928 – 26 June 2016) was an Indian dramatist, theatre director, and poet. He has written over 26 Malayalam plays, many adapted from classical Sanskrit drama and Shakespeare, notably Kalidasa's ''Vikramorvasiy ...

, the iconic Indian dramatist.

Early life

He was born in Neyyattinkara,

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

. His younger brother, Binoj Kulathoor, is also a television artist.

Career

He started his career as a theatre artist at the age of 20 in

's ''Sopanam Theatre Group.'' Along with the group he travelled across India participating in National Theatre Festival(

Bharat Rang Mahotsav Bharat Rang Mahotsav (BRM) (भारत रंग महोत्सव) or the National Theatre Festival, started in 1999, is the annual theatre festival organised by National School of Drama (NSD), New Delhi. The festival was started to showcas ...

) and other prestigious programmes. He wanted to get into movies through this but he later revealed that after joining the group he become totally focused on drama and subsequently he left his dreams of becoming a film actor. From 2005 to 2013 he acted in three different films portraying short roles. Then in 2015 he was cast as Benjamin Brunou, a college principal in the television series Back Benchers, being telecasted in

Amrita TV Amrita TV is an Indian Malayalam Language general Entertainment television channel owned by Mata Amritanandamayi Math. It was launched in 2005. Theme song The theme song, "Lokasamastha," was composed by Rahulraj for Mata Amritanandamayi's 50t ...

. On seeing him in this programme he was called up by director R.Unnikrishnan for his upcoming sitcom being made for Flowers TV. This programme is considered as his breakthrough. He was cast as Balachandran Thampi, a carefree, loving father and husband in the sitcom which was named as

. As he had to spend more time on the sets of Uppum Mulakum, his guru Kavalam Narayana Panicker asked him to stop it. But after being impressed by his work in it, he was allowed to do it, but in return he was asked to never leave theatre, which he agreed and now leads the group after his guru's death in 2016, trying to work there through his busy schedule. He skyrocketed to fame for his work in the programme drawing praise from various media organisations. Then he was called for a supporting role as Advocate Subbu in C/O Saira Banu.

Filmography

Television

Awards

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sopanam, Biju Male actors in Malayalam cinema Living people 21st-century Indian male actors Indian male film actors Indian male television actors 1970 births Neyyattinkara Male actors from Thiruvananthapuram