Kalamandalam Gopi, is an exponent of the classical dance-drama, Kathakali. He began his career on the Kathakali stage in the 1960s and 1970s, but he had been appointed as a teacher at his alma mater, the Kerala Kalamandalam in 1957, by poet laureate Vallathol Narayana Menon, who had founded the school. He is considered an icon of this dance performance.
The Government of India awarded him the civilian honour of Padma Shri in 2009.