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Yami Gautam-starrer “Article 370” won best feature film at India’s 72nd National Film Awards, announced Saturday in New Delhi by the country’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
Gautam also took best actress for her role in the film, a political drama centered on the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. The best actor prize was shared between Kartik Aaryan, honored for “Chandu Champion,” and Malayalam cinema star Mammootty, recognized for his performance in “Bramayugam.” Rajkumar Periasamy won best director for “Amaran.” Best supporting actress was shared between Sachana Namidass for “Maharaja” and Rapshree Varkady for “Mithya.”
Rajkummar Rao-starrer “Srikanth,” directed by Tushar Hiranandani, won best Hindi-language film. Sanjay Mishra took best supporting actor for “Bhakshak.” Telugu-language blockbuster “Kalki 2898 AD” was named best popular film providing wholesome entertainment.
The awards, which honor films certified by India’s Central Board of Film Certification during 2024, were decided by an 11-member jury chaired by Malayalam cinema filmmaker Jayaraj, who previously served on the National Film Awards panel in 2012. The jury viewed close to 400 feature films across 34 languages, including scheduled and non-scheduled tongues.
Technical honors were spread across several major 2024 releases. Tamil-language hit “Amaran” also picked up best editing and shared best music direction (feature film) with “Article 370,” whose score was composed by Shashwat Sachdev; G.V. Prakash Kumar was recognized for “Amaran.” “Pushpa 2: The Rule” won best costume design, while “Kalki 2898 AD” also claimed best production design. “Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3” took best sound design, and “Lucky Baskhar” won best screenplay. Randeep Hooda was honored for best debut film director for “Swatantrya Veer Savarkar.”
In the non-feature categories, “Ram-Naami” won best documentary, and “Main Nida” took best arts/culture film. “Piplantri – A Tale of Eco Feminism” won for promoting social and environmental values, while “Touched as Water,” directed by Joshy Benedict for JB Productions, won best animation film. Filmmaker Anand L. Rai won best direction in the non-feature category for “Statue of Unity – Ekta Ka Prateek,” and the Marathi-language film “Humsafar” won best short film.
Additional non-feature honors went to “NDA” (best editing), “Blue” (best sound design), “Life in Loom” (best cinematography) and “Parat 41°chya Magavar” (best music direction). Faraz Ali won best script for the Hindi-Kashmiri short “Obur,” and Soundarya Jayachandran was honored for narration on “Little Planet: A Tale of Frogs.” Sanjeev Srivastava won best film critic, and Kenchanuru Pradeep Kumar Shetty took the best book prize for his Kannada-language work on the philosophy and politics of Kannada cinema.
Special mentions went to “Chola Dora aur Sui,” directed by Jaymin Modi and Lokesh Ghai, and the Malayalam film “Bhadra-Kali Natakam,” directed by Ananda Jyothi.
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