Ajith began his acting career through a one-scene appearance as a school child in "En Veedu En Kanavar" (1990). Through the recommendation of S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, whose son was a classmate of Ajith, he was cast in his first lead role in the Telugu romantic drama "Prema Pusthakam" (1993). However, the shoot of the film was stalled soon after production began, following the death of the film's director Gollapudi Srinivas. As a result, his first major theatrical release was the Tamil romantic drama "Amaravathi" (1993), which Ajith had signed after being recommended to director Selva by Balasubrahmanyam, who had seen parts of "Prema Pusthakam" prior to its delay. As the film went into post-production, Ajith was bed-ridden due to a racing injury while training for an amateur motor race. He underwent three major surgeries resulting in bed rest for one and a half years. As a result, his voice in the film was dubbed by actor Vikram. Following the injury, Ajith was keen to make up for lost time and signed on to play supporting roles. In the following years, he played character roles in the Arvind Swami-starrer "Paasamalargal" (1994) and Vijay-starrer "Rajavin Parvaiyile" (1995). He was also seen in the family drama "Pavithra" (1994), which featured him as an ailing patient shown maternal affection from Raadhika.