[12][13][14][15] Jyothika left the industry at the peak of her career marrying Tamil actor Suriya on 11 September 2006, after being engaged in a relationship for several years,[16] and whom she was paired with in seven films.

[17] After the success of 36 Vayadhinile, she appeared in a series of women centric films like Magalir Mattum (2017), Naachiyaar (2018), Kaatrin Mozhi (2018), Raatchasi (2019), and Ponmagal Vandhal (2020)[18] and also played a lead female role in Mani Ratnam's multi-starrer Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (2018).

[32] She made her acting debut in the Hindi film Doli Saja Ke Rakhna, directed by Priyadarshan, but it did not do well commercially.

[36] Later that year, she starred in Poovellam Kettuppar, in which she played the love interest of the protagonist, portrayed by her future husband Suriya.

[45] She starred opposite to Ajith Kumar in Poovellam Un Vaasam which became a commercial hit as well as her character received huge response and accloades.

Her roles in these two films, as a negative character in the former (which she played for the first time) and as a deaf and mute in the latter earned her widespread appreciation.

[citation needed] The film was written and produced by her father-in-law Sivakumar and also starred Vijay, R. Madhavan and Suriya.

[citation needed] Jyothika made her comeback to Tamil Cinema with 36 Vayadhinile, a remake of the hit Malayalam film How Old Are You?.

Jyothika received critical acclaim for her performance in the film as a middle-aged housewife who sets out to stand on her own.

[71] Later in February 2016, director Bramma approached Jyothika to play the leading role in a "female-centric" script he had written and impressed by the offer, her husband Suriya agreed to finance the film.

She was also signed by Sri Thenandal Films for another project titled Mersal together in September 2016, opposite Vijay, directed by Atlee.

[77] As per behindwoods Jyothika is fantastic, as she masterfully plays the role of a menacing, short-tempered and a bold cop, with a gracious heart.

[80][81] Jyothika agreed to portray a leading female role in Mani Ratnam's project titled Chekka Chivantha Vaanam in early September 2017, and confirmed her participation to the media while promoting Magalir Mattum (2017).

[19][20] In 2018, she appeared as the lead role of Chitra, a housewife to Arvind Swami's character in Mani Ratnam's film Chekka Chivantha Vaanam.

[82] She was next seen as a housewife struggling to find her own identity in Kaatrin Mozhi, the Tamil remake of Vidya Balan's Tumhari Sulu.

The project, which officially went on the floors on 4 June, was directed by Radha Mohan and marked his reunion with Jyothika after the critically acclaimed Mozhi.

[83] After the success of Kaatrin Mozhi, she was again cast as one of the female lead roles in Mani Ratnam's period action drama film, Ponniyin Selvan: I.

[97] Her 50th film, Udanpirappe was released directly on Amazon Prime Video on 14 October 2021[98] as a part of 2D Entertainment's four-film deal with the streaming service.

[99][100] She was Nominated for Best actress Category for her performances in both films, Ponmagal Vandhal and Udanpirappe as Venba / Angel / Sakthijothi (imagination) and Maathangi Sargunam respectively at 67th Filmfare Awards South.

[103] She was selected as the lead actress opposite Nagarjuna in Sri Ramadasu and Venkatesh in Lakshmi, but refused the offers due to her marriage preparations.

[citation needed] After an impressive comeback, she was approached by director Venu Sriram and producer Dil Raju for a strong character in the film Middle Class Abbayi starring Nani, Sai Pallavi and Bhumika Chawla.

[108][109] For her work in Seetha Kalyanam (2009), she was nominated for Best Actress – Malayalam at Filmfare Awards but lost to Swetha Menon for Paleri Manikyam.

[28][125] She played a mentor in Srikanth (2024) co-starring Rajkummar Rao and Alaya F.[126][127] Her upcoming project is DabbaCartel with Shabana Azmi.

[133][134] Jyothika owns a film production and distribution company named 2D Entertainment, established by her husband and actor Suriya.

[148] Jyothika also starred in a short commercial video outlining child poverty, labour and lack of education, titled Herova?

[153] The unveil and launch happened on the stage of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Seniors with the entire family of stars from Zee Tamil in a ceremony celebrating the channels new look and feel and brand proposition.

[154] Jyothika, along with actor Vivek, had been appointed as ambassadors for plastic free Tamil Nadu campaign by the State government under the leadership of former Chief Minister Edappadi K.

[6] The Hindu referred to her as one of the Superstar women in Indian cinema and noted that she has "proved her mettle and has the box office pull".

[156] Vikram Venkateswaran of The Quint termed her the "standalone female lead actor" who can carry a film "entirely on her shoulders".

[157] Karthik Kumar of Hindustan Times termed her the "comeback queen" and added, "Jyothika brought in the wave of women-centric cinema to Tamil industry which gained momentum post the release of 36 Vayadhinile.