Veteran theatre and film actor
,
Gopalarathinam
famously known by his stage name
Typist Gopu
, passed away due to prolonged illness at the age of 85 on Wednesday, sources confirmed. His lasts rites will be conducted in at his house in Chennai on Thursday morning. Gopu had reportedly developed breathing issues and was put on the ventilator.
Born Manakkal in Trichy district, Typist Gopu made his acting debut in 1965 with
K Balachandar’s ‘Naanal’
and went on to feature in over 400 films. Before becoming a film actor, he made his theatre appearance in a dram troupe run by the
popular late actor Nagesh
. Indeed, both were best buddies and Gopu got his prefix ‘Typist’ by acting in in the 1959 TS Seshadri play ‘Nenje Nee Vaazhga’, in which he played the role of typist which was praised by all. Known for his expressive eyes and body language, Gopu made a name for himself in the showbiz world.
As an actor, he frequently collaborated with A-list actors including Sathyaraj, Kamal Haasan, Sivaji Ganesan, Jaishankar, R Muthuraman, Sirkazhi Govindarajan and Sivakumar, etc. His most notable films include 'Adhey Kangal', 'Unnai Vaazhthi Paadugiren', 'Sugamana Sumaigal', 'Oor Mariyadhai', 'Dikkatra Parvathi', 'Michael Madhana Kamarajan', 'Aalayam' and many more.