Gopi Sundar C. S. (born 30 May 1977) is an Indian music director, programmer, playback singer, songwriter, actor and performer who works in the Malayalam, Telugu and Tamil film industries.
His early interest in music started from working in his father's recording studio business and listening to the radio with his mother.
His ever-growing repertoire consists of almost 5,000 jingles, a number of them advertising the work of filmmaker and feature film cinematographer Rajiv Menon.
[20] In 2013, he sang a melody called "Titli", tuned by Vishal–Shekhar along with Chinmayi and Srimathumitha, for the Bollywood film Chennai Express.
With Salalah Mobiles, he made his acting debut, with a cameo appearance as a qawwali singer in the song "Rasoolallah".
[24][26] Bangalore Days, a romantic comedy-drama film directed by Anjali Menon, featuring an ensemble cast of the top Malayalam actors, was his next release.
Also, the single "Ethu Kari Raavilum" from the film earned Haricharan a Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer.
Following a tremendous response from the music fans, they held a second gig in February 2015 at Sharjah Cricket Stadium, which was to be followed by a world tour across the cities in the US, UK and Australia in coming years.
He did the background score and composed the song "Mukkathe Penne", a poignant melody that served as a paean to the timeless love of Moideen and Kanchanamala, portrayed in the film by actors Prithviraj Sukumaran and Parvathy, respectively.
[33] The film was a success at the box office and was equally appreciated by the critics for adapting a real-life story "without compromising on the aesthetics of the medium".
[34] For "creating a haunting melodic composition", his collaborator, M. Jayachandran, received a National Film Award for Best Music Direction.
His compositions for the film Charlie also went on to become a hit, and the single "Chundari Penne", crooned by Dulquer Salmaan, received wide recognition.
The film, which starred South Superstar Akkineni Nagarjuna and Karthi, was a commercial success, grossing over ₹1 billion (US$14.5 million) worldwide.
The Times of India gave Oopiri's soundtrack four stars, calling it a "winner on all counts and Gopi Sundar is increasingly becoming a force to be reckoned with in Tollywood".
The Times of India's critic Sanjith Surendran praised Sundar's "rousing theme music that made the 161-minute runtime a breeze".
[45] Comrade in America, a Malayalam romantic comedy film, saw him reunite with his long-time collaborator, Amal Neerad.
[47] Having finished working on Role Models, Tiyaan, Chunkzz, and Udaharanam Sujatha, which garnered good response,[48] his upcoming projects include Kammara Sambhavam and Kayamkulam Kochunni.
His latest music work is present in the upcoming film Amala directed by Nishad Ebrahim and Mascot Productions.
He has also frequently associated with Amal Neerad, Arun Kumar Aravind, Vysakh, along with screenwriter duo Bobby–Sanjay, Udayakrishna-Siby K. Thomas and Murali Gopy.
The first gig consisted of an ensemble of Malayalam singers Afsal, Sithara, Najim Arshad, Haricharan, Divya S. Menon, Ramsi, Kavya Ajit, and Sruthi Lakshmi{phanivardhan}.
As a part of the all-India tour for their programme, the hosts – model-turned-actor Paloma Monappa and Meeraj – visited the place while the song recording for the film Comrade in America was in progress.
The show also features Amal Neerad, Dulquer Salmaan, and Sundar himself giving insights into the new wave of Malayalam cinema.
[3] The label aims to support aspiring filmmakers and promising low-budget films by producing the music while retaining the copyrights of the work.
[57] He was also reported to have dated Idea Star Singer contestant Amrutha Suresh, with claims suggesting that the couple was in a live-in relationship.