[2][3] A trained Bharatanatyam dancer,[4] Asin made her acting debut at 15 in Sathyan Anthikkad's Malayalam film Narendran Makan Jayakanthan Vaka (2001).

2011 marked the most successful phase of Asin's Bollywood career, as she starred in Anees Bazmee's romantic comedy Ready, in which she co-starred alongside Salman Khan.

[19] After taking a year out to pursue her education, Asin returned in 2003, with her breakthrough film, Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi opposite Ravi Teja, portraying a Tamil girl in her first Telugu film, which subsequently fetched her the Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu.

[21] That year, she won the Santosham Best Actress Award for her performance alongside Nagarjuna in her second Telugu film Shivamani.

[20][22] Asin had two Telugu releases in 2004: Lakshmi Narasimha alongside Nandamuri Balakrishna and Gharshana opposite Venkatesh.

[24] In the same year, Asin appeared in her first Tamil film was M. Kumaran Son of Mahalakshmi, portraying a Malayali girl opposite Jayam Ravi, reprising her role from the original Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi.

[27] The film, initially launched in 2002, was supposed to be her debut, and is a college love story, which was long-delayed but eventually became a successful venture at the box office, creating wider opportunities for her.

[33] Sify.com praised her portrayal as "magical", describing her character as a "lovable chatterbox", played with "sheer ability in the romantic interludes, the poignant and heartfelt scenes when she rescues minor girls from villains and her gory end are touching".

[35] The following year, her long-delayed venture Varalaru opposite Ajith Kumar succeeded at the box office, and Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu noted that she "looks lustrous and sails through her role smoothly".

[36] Asin then appeared opposite Pawan Kalyan in Annavaram, another successful venture, which marked her final Telugu film.

[37] In her first film of 2007, Asin played the lead opposite Ajith Kumar in Aalwar, which became a box office failure.

[citation needed] Asin's portrayed a Vaishnavite in 12th century Tamil Nadu and a Brahmin girl from Chidambaram in the film, for which she won her first ITFA Best Actress Award.

[50] In her only film the following year, London Dreams, Asin played a music enthusiast from a conservative South Indian family opposite Salman Khan and Ajay Devgn.

[61] Taran Adarsh noted: "[a]mongst the female leads, Asin has the meatiest role and gives a decent account of herself.

[63] Then, she played a Muslim girl pretending to be a Hindu in Bol Bachchan opposite Ajay Devgn, which became another box office success.

[citation needed] Subhash K. Jha found her to be back in "fetching form" post her work in Ghajini.

[68] Post a two-year hiatus from films, Asin played the lead in All Is Well, opposite Abhishek Bachchan.

In an interview during the DNA I Can Women's Half Marathon in 2012, Asin, speaking about the importance of health and the necessity of education said: This cause is probably one of the biggest women-centric issues in our country.

[74]Asin has been the brand ambassador for several companies and products, and has appeared in commercials for Avon,[75] Mirinda,[76] Colgate,[76] Fairever,[77] Tanishq,[76] Big Bazaar,[78] Parachute,[79] Spinz talc,[79] Lux,[80] Amrutanjan Healthcare,[81] and Clinic All Clear.

She can speak seven languages; being well-versed in Malayalam (her mother tongue), Tamil, Telugu, Sanskrit, English, Hindi and French.

[93][96] Asin married Micromax co-founder Rahul Sharma in January 2016 in a Christian wedding that was followed by a Hindu ceremony,[85][97] and quit acting after marriage.

[108] Asin received two Filmfare Awards nominations – Best Female Debut and Best Actress, both for Ghajini, and winning the former.

[109] Additionally, she received eighth Filmfare Awards South nominations – Best Actress – Telugu for Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi and Sivamani, which she won for the former and Best Actress – Tamil for M. Kumaran S/O Mahalakshmi, Majaa, Ghajini, Pokkiri, Dasavathaaram and Kavalan, winning only for Ghajini.