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 sitcom Uppum Mulakum, broadcast on Flowers TV. He made his movie debut in a small role in the movie Rajamanikyam in 2005. He is a Sanskrit drama artist and was trained under Kavalam Narayana Panicker, Indian dramatist.
Early life He was born in Kulathoor, Neyyattinkara, Thiruvananthapuram. 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 Kavalam Narayana Panicker's Sopanam Theatre Group. Along with the group he travelled across India participating in National Theatre Festival(Bharat Rang Mahotsav) 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. 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 Uppum Mulakum. 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.
Controversies In December 2024, Biju Sopanam was named in a sexual assault complaint filed by a female actress associated with the television series Uppum Mulakum. The complaint alleged that Biju Sopanam sexually assaulted the actress during the shoot, while his co-actor S. P. Sreekumar was accused of intimidating her to prevent her from speaking out. The case was initially registered with the Infopark Police and later transferred to the Thrikkakara Police for further investigation. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed to investigate the matter. Following the complaint, both actors exited the show pending the outcome of the investigation.
Filmography
Year Title Role Notes 2005 Rajamanikyam 2006 Bhargavacharitham Moonam Khandam 2010 Nallavan Man in lockup 2011 Veeraputhran 2013 Black Butterfly 2014 Otta Mandaram 2017 C/O Saira Banu Advocate Subbu Lechmi 2018 Kuttanpillayude Sivarathri Suneesh Thattumpurath Achuthan 2019 Janaadhipan Pathinettam Padi Shalamon Abraham Palakkal Love Action Drama Dinesh's Uncle Adhyarathri Satheesh Kamala Ravi Gauthamante Radham Shibu Asan 2021 Djibouti 2022 Priyan Ottathilanu Chekkuttan 2022 Upacharapoorvam Gunda Jayan Sugathan Ally Manoharan Mukundan Unni Associates Dr. Sebatti 2023 Laika Madhura Manohara Moham Jose Kunjamminis Hospital Fr. Ainickal Joy Pendulum Tea Shop Owner Rani Vasu 2024 Iyer in Arabia Thomaskutty Varshangalkku Shesham Film producer Big Ben Idiyan Chandhu Surendran Oru Anweshanathinte Thudakkam Kottayam Crime Branch SI Achuthan 2026
Television Year Programme Role ChannelNotes 2015 Back Benchers Benjamin Brunou, College Principal Amrita TV 2015-2024 Uppum Mulakum Kulathara Shoolamkudi Veetil Balachandran Thampi (Balu) Flowers TV2018KrithyamShivannaYouTubeShort film 2020-2021Double DeckerParamada Veetil BaluFlowers TVReprising his role from Uppum Mulakum2021Pappanum PadminiyumPappanYouTubeWeb series2021Eruvum PuliyumBaluZee KeralamTelefilm 2021KattanOmanakuttan (Omana)YouTubeWeb series2022Erivum PuliyumFreddyZee KeralamReboot of Uppum Mulakum
Awards
Award Year Category Programme Result Kerala State Television Award2017 Best ComedianUppum Mulakum Flowers Comedy Awards 2016 Best Star Pair Flowers TV Award2017 Best Actor
References
External links