Suraj started his career as a stand-up comedian. His mimicry shows were a success with the audience and he was noted for his artificial mockery of the
Thiruvananthapuram accent. Later, he was also criticised for this by some audience during his early film career. He first acted in a film named
Jagapoga which was a spoof of Malayalam movies. He played the role of Pachan as well as
Dadasahib in this film. However the movie was a box office flop and received negative reviews. Suraj then went on to act in several minor roles in films such as
Rasikan,
Achuvinte Amma,
Bus Conductor and
Rasathanthram. Suraj grabbed the attention in Malayalam film industry after he assisted
Mammootty with the Thiruvananthapuram accent in
Rajamanikyam (2005). He would go on to act alongside Mammootty in many comedy films. The duo is considered one of the most memorable onscreen duos in Malayalam cinema. His first breakthrough came with
Thuruppugulan (2006) where he played the sidekick role for the character of
Mammootty. Suraj then went on to play the comedy roles in several hit films such as
Classmates,
Pachakkuthira,
Chotta Mumbai and
Hallo. In 2007, he got his first major supporting role again in a
Mammootty starrer
Mayavi, which became another major breakthrough in his career. Suraj received appreciation for his role as
Peethamparan in
Annan Thambi and
Jabbar in
Lollipop, both of which released in 2008. He played the lead role for the first time with
Duplicate (2009). Suraj's iconic comedy character
Dasamoolam Damu came out with the movie
Chattambinaadu (2009) starring
Mammootty. The character became popular several years after the release of
Chattambinaadu and eventually attained a
cult status. He won his first
Kerala State Film Award in 2009, by winning the award for the
Best Comedian for his performance in
Ivar Vivahitharayal. He won the award again two times in 2010 and 2013 for the movies
Oru Naal Varum and
Daivathinte Swantham Cleetus respectively. Suraj's another popular comedy character is
Idivettu Sugunan which came out with
Pokkiriraja (2010). He was also praised for his role as
Vadivelu in the Dileep starrer comedy movie
Karyasthan. Suraj played some memorable roles in the movies
China Town and
Teja Bhai & family, both released in 2011. His other memorable comedy roles came out with the movies such as
Mallu Singh,
Mr. Marumakan,
101 Weddings,
Manthrikan,
Sound Thoma, Pullipulikalum Aattinkuttiyum,
Ring Master,
Bhaiyya Bhaiyya,
Cousins and
Two Countries. Suraj's potential to play the character and lead roles came out in 2013 as he won that year's
National Award for his performance in
Perariyathavar, at the
61st National Film Awards. Noted filmmaker and jury chairman Saeed Mirza, while announcing Suraj's award in a press meet, said: "Suraj has played a municipal sweeper [in the film] but it is an incredibly dignified performance. He excels in comedy but in this film Suraj has brilliantly played a reticent character. I would not have been able to sleep had his name not been in the list of awardees". Suraj received critical appreciation for his acting with a potent cameo in
Action Hero Biju (2016). This movie was also a turning point in his career and a breakthrough performance as he underwent a complete evolution with his acting. In ''
Karinkunnam 6's, he portrayed a ruthless police officer and in Oru Muthassi Gadha, he played the lead role. Suraj returned to do the comedy role with the 2016 blockbuster Pulimurugan. In the movie Aby'' (2017) he played the character of a selfish neighbour. Suraj's another critically acclaimed performance came out with
Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum (2017), where he played a lead character alongside
Fahad Fasil, who also received appreciation for his performance. He went on to play lead roles in
Varnyathil Aashanka and
Kuttanpillayude Sivarathri (2018). He bagged the
Kerala State Film Award for the Best Actor in 2019 for his performance in
Vikruthi and
Android Kunjappan Version 5.25, both the films in which he played a lead role alongside
Soubin Shahir. His performance in
Driving License alongside
Prithviraj also received appreciation. In 2021, Suraj played the lead role in
The Great Indian Kitchen which received positive reactions from various film critics and was well received by the audience. In 2022, he played a pivotal role in Prithviraj starrer
Jana Gana Mana which was critically acclaimed and was a commercial success. ==Personal life==