Lighting up the screen

Anshita Mehra

The 70th National Film Awards, announced on Friday in the national capital, honoured the best cinematic achievements, with a diverse range of films, actors, and crews being celebrated from across the country. Punjabi film Baghi Di Dhee was lauded as the Best Punjabi Film, while Gulmohar, starring Sharmila Tagore and Manoj Bajpayee, took home the award for the Best Hindi Film and received a Special Mention. The film's impactful storytelling also earned it the Best Screenplay award.

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting revealed the winners on Friday in New Delhi. The winners, including the recipient of the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award, will be honoured by President Droupadi Murmu in a ceremony scheduled for October 2024.

In a major win for the South Indian film industry, KGF Chapter 2 and Kantara dominated key categories. Kantara, directed by and starring Rishab Shetty, secured the Best Actor award for Shetty's powerful performance. The film's compelling narrative also led to it being named the Best Kannada Film. KGF Chapter 2, starring Yash, not only won the Best Action Direction Award for its outstanding stunt choreography but also emerged as the Best Kannada Film.

At a glance

Best Actor:

Rishabh Shetty

Best Actress: Nithya Menen and Manasi Parekh

Best Director:

Sooraj Barjatya (Uunchai)

Special Mention Award:

Manoj Bajpayee

The Tamil film Ponniyin Selvan Part 1 was another standout, sweeping four major awards, including Best Cinematography, Best Sound Design, Best Music Direction for AR Rahman and Best Tamil Film.

Brahmastra Part 1, starring Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt, emerged as a significant winner in the AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comics) category, showcasing the film's cutting-edge visual effects. The movie's music also garnered widespread acclaim, with Pritam winning the Best Music Direction award and Arijit Singh taking home the Best Male Playback Singer award for his soulful rendition of the hit track Kesariya.

The Best Female Playback Singer award was given to Bombay Jayashri for the Malayalam film Saudi Vellakka.

The Haryanvi film Fouja won the Best Debut Film of a Director award and also secured Best Lyrics. Pawan Malhotra, who starred in the film, was recognised as the Best Supporting Actor.

The Malayalam language drama s was awarded Best Feature Film, adding to its growing list of accolades after winning the 2023 Grand Jury Award at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles. The film also won Best Screenplay and Best Editing awards.

Veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan’s film Uunchai won the Best Direction award, with Sooraj Barjatya being recognised for his directorial excellence. Neena Gupta was honoured as Best Supporting Actress for her role in Uunchai. In the non-feature film category, the Hindi/Urdu movie Ayena clinched the award, reflecting the diversity and depth of Indian cinema.