The winners of the 72nd National Film Awards were announced by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in New Delhi on Saturday, which honors the best achievements in Indian cinema in feature films, non-feature films and cinema writing. The awards recognize films certified by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) between January 1 and December 31, 2024.One of the biggest highlights of this year’s awards was: Yami Gautam won the Best Actress award for her powerful performance in Article 370. The movie also emerged as the biggest winner of the ceremony by taking home the prestigious Best Feature Film award.Sharing the Best Actor honor are: Kartik Aaryan for his transformative performance in Chandu Champion and: Mammootty for his critically acclaimed role in the Malayalam horror drama Bramayugam.
Article 370 emerged as the biggest winner
Directed by Aditya Suhas Jambhale, Article 370 won the coveted Best Feature Film award in addition to Yami Gautam bagging the Best Actress trophy. The political thriller received widespread praise upon its release for its storytelling and performances.
Kartik Aaryan, Mammootty shared the Best Actor award
The jury honored both performances in the Best Actor category. Kartik Aaryan was acclaimed for Chandu Champion, with critics praising his physical transformation and commitment to portraying Paralympian Murlikant Petkar. Veteran star Mammootty received the accolade for his terrific performance in Rahul Sadasivan’s Bramayugam, a role that garnered widespread praise from audiences and critics.
Other big winners:
Director Rajkumar Periasamy won Best Director for Tamil blockbuster Amaran, while Nag Ashwin’s sci-fi epic Kalki. 2898 AD was named the Best Popular Film that Delivered Good Entertainment.Actor-filmmaker Randeep Hooda won the Best Debut Film of a Director award for Swatantrya Veer Savarkar, marking a significant milestone in his directorial journey.In the Hindi cinema category, Srikanth, directed by Tushar Hiranandani and starring Rajkummar Rao, Jyotika and Alaya F, was awarded the Best Hindi Feature Film.The Best Film Critic (Hindi) award went to Sanjeev Shrivastava.
A year of acclaimed performances
The qualifying year of 2024 saw several Indian films garnering critical acclaim both domestically and internationally. Films like All We Imagine As Light and Laapataa Ladies received worldwide recognition, while the performances of actors including Sai Pallavi (Amaran), Kani Kusruti (All We Imagine As Light, Girls Will Be Girls), Shraddha Kapoor (Stree 2), Alia Bhatt (Jigra and Prithviraj Sukumaran) were widely appreciated during Life.
72nd National Film Awards. Major winners:
Best Feature Film: Article 370:Best Hindi Feature Film: Srikanth:Best Actress: Yami Gautam (Article 370)Best Actor: Kartik Aaryan (Chandu Champion) and Mammootty (Bramayugam)Best Director: Rajkumar Periasamy (Amaran)Best Popular Movie That Gives Good Entertainment: Kalki: 2898 ADBest Debut Film by a Director: Randeep Hooda (Swatantrya Veer Savarkar)Best Film Critic (Hindi). Sanjeev Shrivastava
