AnjaliTamil Actor – Movies List & Song Lyrics

Following a stint in modelling, she was cast in starring roles in two Telugu productions; she debuted in the thriller Photo (2006). Her breakthrough film was again a thriller, Kattradhu Thamizh (2007). She has won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Tamil two times consecutively, for her performance in Angadi Theru (2010) and Engaeyum Eppothum (2011), and a Tamil Nadu State Film Award for the former. Her success in Telugu cinema continued during 2013–2014 with the films Seethamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu, Balupu, Masala, Geethanjali and Dictator. She has received Nandi Award for Best Actress for her performance in the horror-comedy Geethanjali (2014).

Anjali was born on 16 June 1986 in Razole, East Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh, India in a Telugu family. She has two brothers and a sister. She completed her schooling in Razole and later moved to Chennai where she continued her studies, pursuing a degree in mathematics. Anjali remarked that her parents had aspirations to become actors and that they "realised their dreams" through her.

In 2002, Anjali was signed on to appear in director Kalanjiyam's Sathamintri Muthamidu under the screen name of Sundhari, but the film later failed to materialise. The director also began two other films with Anjali, Valiba Desam and En Kanavu Thaanadi, though those also failed to materialise. During one of her modelling assignments, she was spotted by director Siva Nageswara Rao, who offered her a starring role in his Telugu thriller film Photo (2006). She played the female lead in another Telugu venture, the romance film Premalekha Raasa (2007), directed by lyricist Kulasekhar, opposite a debutant Mallidi Vassishta and performed poorly at the box office, failing to propel her career in Telugu cinema.

She made her Tamil film début later that year in Kattradhu Thamizh, directed by Ram, which released to strong critical acclaim. Anjali won critical praise for her portrayal of Anandhi, the childhood friend and love interest of a young teacher-turned-psychopath (enacted by Jeeva). A Behindwoods critic wrote that she was "a delight to watch and spellbinds the viewer with her beautiful fresh look and her performance", while Pavithra Srinivasan of Rediff.com described her as "a breath of fresh air" and "the perfect foil to Jeeva's plethora of emotions". Her performance earned her the Vijay Award for Best Debut Actress for that year, and she grew in popularity, leading her to several more offers, albeit the film proved commercially unsuccessful.

She appeared in two films in 2008; Honganasu, her first Kannada project and Aayudham Seivom in Tamil. The latter, which featured her as the female lead opposite Sundar C, was panned by critics and she was criticised for accepting that role, with reviewers noting that she had nothing to do in the film, "except roll her eyes".

She next played Kani, a fiery, independent sales girl in a textile showroom in Angadi Theru (2010) which was released two years after her last venture. The Vasanthabalan-directed tragedy drama focused on the lives of young employees who work in retail department stores. The film was shot in real location at the Ranganathan Street in T Nagar, Chennai with hidden cameras, with Anjali disclosing that they wore the uniform of a particular textile company, passing off as real sales-people and selling goods. Angadi Theru opened to rave reviews, whilst also fetching Anjali critical acclaim for her performance, which went on to win several accolades, including the Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Tamil. She subsequently appeared in two family drama films; S Pictures' Rettaisuzhi, in which she shared screen with veteran directors Bharathiraja and K Balachandar, and Magizhchi, co-starring and directed by Gowthaman. The latter released to favourable reviews, and "almost perfect as the young, a bit mischievous, village girl"; however both films failed to succeed at the box office.

In 2011, she first appeared in Payyans alongside Jayasurya, which marked her début in Malayalam cinema, followed by a lead female role in the Cloud Nine Movies-production Thoonga Nagaram, in which she starred as an anchor on local television, and a cameo appearance in a song in Ko that also featured other lead actors from Tamil cinema. She was then seen in the small-budget drama film Karungali, directed by Kalanjiyam. Following her rise to fame post Angadi Theru, Kalanjiyam revived one of the projects, namely Karungali, with Anjali agreeing to be part of it, owing to her prior commitments. The film featured her as a childless housewife living in a bad relationship with her husband, and was a critical and commercial failure.