Her first role was in Vaali (1999), for which she won Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut – South. and Dinakaran Best Female Debut Later that year, she starred in Poovellam Kettuppar, in which she played the love interest of the protagonist, portrayed by her husband Suriya. The success of the film Kushi became a turning point in her career. A string of successful films followed between 2000 and 2002, among them Mugavaree, Dum Dum Dum and Snegithiye. Her characters had equal importance as the hero. She also acted with Kamal Haasan during this period, in the comedy film Thenali. She was awarded the Filmfare Best Tamil Actress Award for her role in Kushi. Her role in Rhythm though small, has been widely appreciated. After the success of Kushi, she was signed to play the female lead in Friends, opposite Vijay, but she was replaced by Devayani. She collaborated with Mani Ratnam for the first time by appearing in his production house Madras Talkies' romantic comedy Dumm Dumm Dumm, alongside Madhavan. The film won positive acclaim and became a success not only in Tamil Nadu, but also in Andhra with its dubbed version. She also made an appearance in the Kannada film industry opposite Upendra in Nagarahavu. She had a dual role in this film. Later, she appeared in the Tamil thriller film Snegithiye, directed by Priyadarshan, made in all south languages.