M.R. Gopakumar started his acting career as an amateur actor in 1974 in G. Sankarapillai’s drama ‘Rakshapurushan’ . This helped Gopakumar identify his passion for acting and he found himself being a part of five more plays staged by the club. Towards the late 70’s, a few young aspiring artists in Thiruvananthapuram came together to form an amateur drama troupe, which was named ‘Natyagruham’. The troupe that was headed by Professor Narendra Prasad soon became very popular among a vibrant art-loving society in Thiruvananthapuram. Gopakumar was one of the founding members of Natyagruham. . During the next 15 years with the troupe, he associated himself with several stage plays that won the accolades of many art-lovers across Kerala.