K. Venu Gopal was born on 22 May 1948 to P. K. Kesavan Pillai and P. Kunjikkuttiyamma in Nedumudi, Alappuzha district as one of their five childrens. He is popularly known by his stage name Nedumudi Venu. He has also written screenplays and has directed one film.
He was involved in art and music since his academic period. He was also a member of the Kerala Students Union. After graduating from Sanatana Dharma College, Alappuzha, he worked as a journalist in Kalakaumudi and as a teacher in a tutorial institute.
Venu was living in Thiruvananthapuram when he made friends with the likes of Aravindan, P. Padmarajan and Bharath Gopi. This ultimately paved way for his film career.
Venu started his career in theatre and went on to act in films. He debuted in the film Thambu (1978) by director G. Aravindan. His acting skills were showcased in the Bharathan film Aaravam. Padmarajan's Oridathoru Phayalwan set a milestone for him. It marked his start in karanavar (head of the family) roles, which included most of his memorable performances.
Venu also wrote scripts for movies. He wrote the stories for the films Kattathe Kilikkoodu, Theertham, Sruthi, Ambada Njane, Oru Katha Oru Nunnakkatha, Savidham, and Angane Oru Avadhikkalathu. He also tried his hand in direction with Pooram. He has also acted in a few Tamil films with director Shankar, such as Kamal Hasan's Indian and Vikram's Anniyan.
Venu has also acted in some television serials. He won the Best Actor award for his role in 'Saira at the Zimbabwe International Film Festival which concluded in September 2007; Saira was the only film from India to be included in the festival. The committee mentioned that he acted compellingly and convincingly in his portrayal of a man caught between secularism and fundamentalism.
He has won 2 National Film awards - Best Supporting Actor award for His Highness Abdullah in 1990 and Special Jury Award for Margam in 2003. He has won 6 Kerala State Film Awards include 3 Best Actor (1981, 1987, 2003), 2 Second Best Actor (1980, 1994) and 1 Special Jury Award (1991).
source : Wikipedia
Compiled by: Sidhardh Ramesh