‘That income has dried up’: Suresh Gopi quips about dip in earnings as event invitations drop

For those unfamiliar, the actor-turned-politician is a BJP MP representing the Thrissur constituency in Kerala and also serves as a Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas.

‘God decides’: Suresh Gopi on dwindling event invitations

“I have done many inaugurations in the past. But for some time now, I haven’t been called for many. Consequently, the income from that source has also dried up. I have no complaints about it, though. Whatever God has decided for me will happen. If not through this path, it will happen through another. Inaugural ceremonies mark a beginning. I wish this marks a restart for me as an inaugurator as well,” Manorama Online quoted him as saying.

Once a superstar who ruled Malayalam cinema alongside Mohanlal and Mammootty, Suresh Gopi has been more focused on politics for the past few years, particularly after his stardom waned.

Debut as an actor and initial years

He made his acting debut as a child artiste in KS Sethumadhavan’s Odayil Ninnu (1965), starring Sathyan and Prem Nazir in the lead roles. He returned as an adult actor about two decades later, playing a minor role in the Tamil film Niraparaadhi (1984). He also made a small appearance in Mohanlal’s TP Balagopalan MA (1986).

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In the years that followed, he predominantly played second fiddle to major actors, as well as supporting and villainous characters in major movies, thus slowly establishing himself in Malayalam cinema. His most notable films during this era were Poovinu Puthiya Poonthennal, Rajavinte Makan, Sayam Sandhya, Irupatham Noottandu, January Oru Orma, Bhoomiyile Rajakkanmar, New Delhi, Manu Uncle, and Oru CBI Diary Kurippu.

Rise as Malayalam cinema’s iconic ‘action hero’

Suresh Gopi then began landing lead roles, and the 1990s witnessed him rise as the “action hero” with movies like Ekalavyan, Mafia, Chukkan, Kashmeeram, Commissioner, Highway, Yuvathurki, Lelam, Pathram, Vazhunnor, Crime File, and FIR.

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However, his career declined in the 2000s with a string of flops. Although a few of his movies became big hits in the years that followed, Suresh Gopi never returned to his 90s glory. He was most recently seen in director Pravin Narayanan’s JSK: Janaki V v/s State of Kerala (2025).