In late 2003, Vijay starred in the action-romance flick Thirumalai, co-starring Jyothika, directed by debutant Ramana and produced by K. Balachander's Kavithalaya Productions, which featured him in a different way.
Thirumalai was considered a turning point in Vijay's career.
Udhaya, which began production in 1998 and filming in 2002, but was delayed, was finally released in early 2004.

Ghilli, a remake of the Telugu film Okkadu was released next in 2004, and completed 200 days in theatres in Tamil Nadu.
Directed by S. Dharani and produced by A. M. Rathnam, it co-starred Trisha and Prakash Raj.
Ghilli was the first Tamil film of all time to gross over ₹500 million, or ₹50 crore, in the domestic box office.
For almost five years, Rajinikanth's Padayappa (1999), which collected a then record over ₹30 crore, was regarded as the benchmark for the Tamil film industry with regards to box-office numbers.
Ghilli also set the record for becoming the highest grossing non-Malayalam film in Kerala at the time, and it reportedly performed greater than mainstream Malayalam movies in the state.
The film grossed nearly $500,000 in the Malaysian market, which made it the first non-Rajinikanth or Kamal Haasan film to achieve this.
Another record that Ghilli broke was M. G. Ramachandran's Adimai Penn (1969) record for the most people seeing a movie in the first week of its release.
The scene in which Velu (Vijay) briefly uses Dhanalakshmi (Trisha) as a hostage when surrounded by Muthupandi (Raj) was parodied by Shah Rukh Khan with Deepika Padukone in the Bollywood film Chennai Express (2013).

Ghilli was followed by Madhurey, directed by Ramana Madhesh.
In 2005, he starred in debutant Perarasu's Thirupaachi, followed by a guest appearance in his father's Sukran, the romantic comedy Sachien, co-starring Genelia D'Souza, directed by John Mahendran, and Sivakasi, starring Asin, again directed by Perarasu.
Vijay's next film Aathi, the remake of Telugu film Athanokkade, was released in early 2006.
It is produced by his father S. A. Chandrasekhar and again directed by Ramana.
In early 2007, Vijay starred in the gangster film Pokkiri, a remake of the Telugu film of the same name.
Directed by Prabhu Deva, it became the third-highest-grossing Tamil film of 2007 and became the first Tamil film of all-time to complete a 100-day theatrical run in Kerala.
The film received critical acclaim.

In late 2007, Vijay starred in the psychological thriller film Azhagiya Tamil Magan, directed by Bharathan, who made his directional debut with this film.
Vijay played a dual role for the first time in his career.
He played the roles of both the antagonist and protagonist.
The film was only a moderate success at the box office.
Vijay was honoured with people's choice Superstar award in 2008 Vijay TV awards ceremony.
In 2008, he starred in the action comedy film Kuruvi, again under Dharani's direction, and produced by Red Giant Movies.
The year 2009 commenced with the action film Villu, in which Vijay teamed up again with Prabhu Deva and played another dual role.
His next film Vettaikaaran, directed by Babusivan and produced by AVM Productions and distributed by Sun Pictures became one of the highest-grossing Tamil films of 2009.
In 2010, he acted in the action comedy film Sura, also distributed by Sun Pictures.
This was Vijay's 50th film.
In early 2011, Vijay joined up with director Siddique again, for the romantic comedy Kaavalan, a Tamil remake of the Malayalam film Bodyguard.
It received positive responses from both viewers and critics and was a box office hit.
Kaavalan was screened at the Shanghai International Film Festival in China.
During Diwali the same year, his next film, the action film Velayudham, directed by M. Raja and produced by Venu Ravichandran was released.
Velayudham became one of the top-grossing films of 2011.
In late 2003, Vijay starred in the action-romance flick Thirumalai, co-starring Jyothika, directed by debutant Ramana and produced by K. Balachander's Kavithalaya Productions, which featured him in a different way. Thirumalai was considered a turning point in Vijay's career. Udhaya, which began production in 1998 and filming in 2002, but was delayed, was finally released in early 2004.
Ghilli, a remake of the Telugu film Okkadu was released next in 2004, and completed 200 days in theatres in Tamil Nadu. Directed by S. Dharani and produced by A. M. Rathnam, it co-starred Trisha and Prakash Raj. Ghilli was the first Tamil film of all time to gross over ₹500 million, or ₹50 crore, in the domestic box office. For almost five years, Rajinikanth's Padayappa (1999), which collected a then record over ₹30 crore, was regarded as the benchmark for the Tamil film industry with regards to box-office numbers. Ghilli also set the record for becoming the highest grossing non-Malayalam film in Kerala at the time, and it reportedly performed greater than mainstream Malayalam movies in the state. The film grossed nearly $500,000 in the Malaysian market, which made it the first non-Rajinikanth or Kamal Haasan film to achieve this. Another record that Ghilli broke was M. G. Ramachandran's Adimai Penn (1969) record for the most people seeing a movie in the first week of its release. The scene in which Velu (Vijay) briefly uses Dhanalakshmi (Trisha) as a hostage when surrounded by Muthupandi (Raj) was parodied by Shah Rukh Khan with Deepika Padukone in the Bollywood film Chennai Express (2013).
Ghilli was followed by Madhurey, directed by Ramana Madhesh. In 2005, he starred in debutant Perarasu's Thirupaachi, followed by a guest appearance in his father's Sukran, the romantic comedy Sachien, co-starring Genelia D'Souza, directed by John Mahendran, and Sivakasi, starring Asin, again directed by Perarasu. Vijay's next film Aathi, the remake of Telugu film Athanokkade, was released in early 2006. It is produced by his father S. A. Chandrasekhar and again directed by Ramana. In early 2007, Vijay starred in the gangster film Pokkiri, a remake of the Telugu film of the same name. Directed by Prabhu Deva, it became the third-highest-grossing Tamil film of 2007 and became the first Tamil film of all-time to complete a 100-day theatrical run in Kerala. The film received critical acclaim.
In late 2007, Vijay starred in the psychological thriller film Azhagiya Tamil Magan, directed by Bharathan, who made his directional debut with this film. Vijay played a dual role for the first time in his career. He played the roles of both the antagonist and protagonist. The film was only a moderate success at the box office. Vijay was honoured with people's choice Superstar award in 2008 Vijay TV awards ceremony. In 2008, he starred in the action comedy film Kuruvi, again under Dharani's direction, and produced by Red Giant Movies. The year 2009 commenced with the action film Villu, in which Vijay teamed up again with Prabhu Deva and played another dual role. His next film Vettaikaaran, directed by Babusivan and produced by AVM Productions and distributed by Sun Pictures became one of the highest-grossing Tamil films of 2009. In 2010, he acted in the action comedy film Sura, also distributed by Sun Pictures. This was Vijay's 50th film. In early 2011, Vijay joined up with director Siddique again, for the romantic comedy Kaavalan, a Tamil remake of the Malayalam film Bodyguard. It received positive responses from both viewers and critics and was a box office hit. Kaavalan was screened at the Shanghai International Film Festival in China. During Diwali the same year, his next film, the action film Velayudham, directed by M. Raja and produced by Venu Ravichandran was released. Velayudham became one of the top-grossing films of 2011.
Vijay (actor)