Maya Karin

In 2000, she was cast as a television show host for Malaysia's TV3 lifestyle entertainment programme Wavelength, which began her mainstream career and exposure. She was soon cast in her first film role as one of the leads in Aziz M. Osman's Seri Dewi Malam alongside popular actor Hairie Othman. Later that year, she played a girl living in a rural village in her second movie No Problem which was a critial & box office failure. She won the New Popular Artist Award at Malaysia's Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian and the Anugerah Media Hiburan in 2001. In 2003 she was cast in a supporting role in a hit movie, Mr. Cinderella 2.

In mid-2004, she was cast by director Shuhaimi Baba in the lead role in Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam.[2] The film was both critically and commercially successful. She won the Best Actress Award at the 49th Asia Pacific Film Festival 2004 in Fukuoka, Japan. She was also received her first nomination for Best Actress In A Leading Role at Malaysia Film Festival (FFM).

In 2005, Karin reprised her role as the lead in the sequel Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam II and continued to receive critical acclaims by winning the award of Best Actor (male/female) at the Estepona Fantasy and Terror Film Festival 2005 in Málaga, Spain and, her second nomination for FFM's Best Actress. Following the mass critical and commercial success of these two films and so her performance, Maya won the coveted Most Popular Actress (Film) Award at the Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian 2005.

Despite her growing feature film career, Maya continued her involvement in television, and in 2004 she was invited by Channel [V] International to join their VJ team. In 2006, she was voted Best VJ in Star Buzz Editor's Choice Awards 2006. Other shows that she has hosted are the bridal programme 'Ratu Sehari' (Queen for a Day) in 2004 for Malaysia's Astro Ria channel and the travelogue programme 'Beauty Secrets From The East' in 2005 for TV3.[3][4]

In 2007, Maya played a variety of lead roles in Pesona Pictures' Waris Jari Hantu and 1957: Hati Malaya and Tayangan Unggul's Anak Halal and continued to receive nominations in various award functions. Maya won Best Actress Awards in Malaysia Film Festival and Anugerah Oskar Malaysia in 2008 for her genuine portrayal as a tomboy girl in Anak Halal.

Years after she involved in drama-centric films, Maya then showed her versatility by playing various comedic roles in several hit films. It began with blockbuster film Duyung released in 2008 where she plays the title role, a mermaid. In this film, Maya was appreciated for performing all the underwater scenes on her own in the open sea of Sipadan Island. In the same year, she received her second Most Popular Actress (Film) Award at the Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian 2008, following her mass popularity for the last two years. In 2009, she starred in Pisau Cukur,[5] a hit comedy film about gold diggers[6] where she performed more comedy scenes than her role in Duyung.[7]

In 2010, she played a famous entertainment show host who fall in love with a guy from a rural village in the romantic comedy movie Cun alongside Remy Ishak.[8]

In November 2011, despite her urbanised and modern figure, Maya surprised her fans and movie-goers with her moving performance as a young women from a rural village struggling with life and love, in her biggest commercial success Ombak Rindu,[9] which gained her the Best Actress Award at both the Anugerah Skrin and Malaysia Film Festival in 2012 and her third Most Popular Actress (Film) Award at the Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian 2011.

Afterwards, Maya portrayed two roles she never played before in Lagenda Budak Setan 2[10] and Sejoli, and managed to stand out despite acting alongside other fellow established actors. Her genuine tickling portrayal of a girl looking for her true love in the latter film gained her the award of Best Actress in Comedy Role in the second Anugerah Lawak Warna in 2014. Waiting to be released are her two thriller/suspense movies of Jwanita[11][12] and Nota, with the latter film directed and produced with collaboration between local and Japanese film producers and crews.[13][14][15]

Until now, Maya is acknowledged as an actor with most successful horror role performance in the local film industry and often cited by her fans and local movie-goers as a banshee, a mermaid and Izzah (her role in Ombak Rindu), thanks to her impressive and lasting performances in the respective films.[16][17][18]

It is reported in March 2017 that Maya will appear in the sequel of the Malaysian horror film, Munafik titled Munafik 2 directed by Syamsul Yusof. She reportedly replacing its lead cast, Nabila Huda who confirmed that she wouldn't starred in the film's sequel.[19][20] Maya later rebuked the chatter and explained, “I think it’s confusing to the audience if they read in the news that I’m ‘replacing’ her. I really have to stress that I’m not replacing anyone. (Nabila’s) character died in the previous movie. I’m playing an entirely different character”.[21] The decision to cast Maya as the lead actress in Munafik 2 turned out to be the best when the movie made history as the highest-grossing Malaysian film to date with a record of RM48 million in sales.[22] Other than Malaysia, Munafik 2 also gained commercial success in Indonesia, Brunei, and Singapore.[23]