In 2001, he acted in the film "Kushi". The film was released on 27 April 2001 and was directed by S. J. Suryah, which became a huge hit in that year. In 2001, he was the brand ambassador for Pepsi at the time his brother Chiranjeevi was promoting Coca-Cola. His next film "Johnny", written and directed by himself, released on 26 April 2003. Kalyan also starred in the film, along with Renu Desai, produced by Allu Aravind and music composed by Ramana Gogula.