Nakkheeran Gopal (born 10 April 1959) is a veteran journalist from Tamil Nadu, India. He is the editor and publisher of Tamil political investigative journal Nakkheeran. He shot to national fame in the 1990s when he took interviews with sandalwood and ivory smuggler Veerappan, who was surviving in the forests committing crimes on the Tamil Nadu – Karnataka border, hoodwinking the police of the two states. He completed his school education at Municipal School of Aruppukkottai and SBK Higher Secondary School. After clearing pre-university course at Devanga Arts College, he graduated as Bachelor of Commerce from Saiva Bhanu Kshatriya College in 1977. Apart from academics, he was part of his college hockey team and also involved in art works that could be considered as one of the early signs of a contemporary layout artist and editor. Post-degree, Rajagopal's father wanted him to be employed in a bank. Rather being idle waiting for a bank profession, Gopal worked in a provisional store much to his father’s displeasure. In 1978, his relative promised him of a job in then Madras however that could not be fulfilled later but eyeing, which Rajagopal had moved into capital city initially.