Robo Shankar who is a mimicry artist was offered by Gokul a role in Rowthiram, however his scenes were edited out from the film. Gokul again cast him in a role of Pasupathi’s henchman in Idharkuthane Aasaipattai Balakumara (2013) which gave him a break as an actor. After doing small roles in Yaaruda Mahesh and Kappal, Balaji Mohan cast him the role of a drunkard in Vaayai Moodi Pesavum (2014). His performance was described by critics as “scream”. He portrayed a negative character in Touring Talkies (2015). He then acted in Maari (2015) where his performance was mentioned by critics that he “deserves a special mention” and “steals the show with his unique one-liners and body language”. In March 2017, he has signed his next project with Pawan Kalyan which is to be directed by Trivikram Srinivas.
Babu was first spotted by director Ram Bala, after he accompanied a friend to the shoot of the comedy television series, Lollu Sabha. Intrigued by Babu’s peculiar looks and physique, Ram Bala enquired if Babu wanted to become an actor and subsequently took him on board as a junior artiste. Babu also worked as an assistant director in the series, helping write scenes for two years.[3] Babu made his feature film debut by featuring in the Ameer-starrer Yogi (2009) as an aspiring actor who wants to be photographed by Ganja Karuppu’s character, and subsequently adapted the name of the film as a prefix for his stage name. In 2013, he appeared in his first extended comedy role with Pattathu Yaanai (2013), while he also featured in the Hindi film, Chennai Express alongside Shahrukh Khan.
He then rose to fame following his performances as a comedy rival to Sivakarthikeyan in Maan Karate (2014) and as eerie comedian in Yaamirukka Bayamey (2014), before becoming a regular cast member in Tamil comedy films. In 2015, he appeared in over a dozen films and won positive reviews for his work in Kaaka Muttai (2015) and Kirumi (2015). Yogi Babu had a breakthrough year in 2016, featuring in 20 films, and winning critical acclaim for his role alongside Vijay Sethupathi in Aandavan Kattalai (2016)