Her other releases of that year were "Gharwali Baharwali" which gained a below average status, "Vinashak", "Pardesi Babu" and "Aunty No. 1", all of which were unsuccessful. In 1999, Tandon starred opposite Upendra in his self-titled Kannada psychological thriller film, "Upendra". She also received praise from critics for her performance in "Shool". She worked in films such as "Shool" (1999), "Bulandi" (2000) and "Aks" (2001) won her huge acclaim. She won many awards as well as the Filmfare Special Performance Award for her performance in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's "Aks". Her years in the industry paid off when she won the coveted National Film Award for Best Actress for her performance in Kalpana Lajmi's "Daman: A Victim of Marital Violence" (2001), where she played a battered wife to an abusive husband. She surprised critics and audiences with her performance in the film and received much appreciation for her work. Critic Taran Adarsh said: "Raveena Tandon lends credibility to the role of a battered wife and walks away with the honours. The pathos she conveys through her expressions makes you realise that she's a performer of substance". Since then, she has starred in a number of critically acclaimed films, such as "Satta" (2003) and "Dobara" (2004), but has not had much box office success. Her role as a middle-class woman thrust into the world of politics in the former was praised. Critic Taran Adarsh wrote: "Raveena Tandon delivers a bravura performance. The actress takes giant strides as a performer, giving the right touches to her character. Here's a performance that's bound to be noticed". Her role as a schizophrenic in "Dobara" was also praised with one critic saying: "Raveena is in sync with her character, playing her part with elaan". Her only release in 2006 was "Sandwich" which opened to poor reviews and reception. In 2015, she made a comeback to Bollywood in longtime friend Anurag Kashayp's magnum opus "Bombay Velvet". Playing a sultry jazz singer, her brief performance was highly praised by critics. In 2017, she was seen in the thriller movie "Maatr" in which she plays a mother who seeks revenge for her daughter's rape.