The 72nd National Film Awards celebrated the best of Indian cinema, with Article 370 emerging as the biggest winner of the year. The political thriller took home Best Feature Film, while Yami Gautam was honoured with the Best Actress award for her performance in the film.
In the Best Actor category, the jury chose two winners. Malayalam cinema icon Mammootty was recognised for Bramayugam, while Bollywood star Kartik Aaryan won for Chandu Champion.
The awards honour films certified by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) between January 1 and December 31, 2024. The winners were announced by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in New Delhi.
Article 370 Leads the Winners
One of the biggest highlights of this year’s ceremony was the success of Article 370, which secured three major awards.
Apart from winning Best Feature Film, the film earned Yami Gautam her first National Film Award for Best Actress. Composer Shashwat Sachdev also received the award for Best Music Direction (Songs) for the film’s soundtrack.
Mammootty and Kartik Aaryan Take Home Best Actor
Veteran Malayalam actor Mammootty won the prestigious Best Actor award for his powerful performance in the supernatural thriller Bramayugam.
Sharing the honour was Kartik Aaryan, who impressed audiences with his portrayal of Paralympian Murlikant Petkar in Chandu Champion.
Rajkumar Periasamy Wins Best Director
Tamil filmmaker Rajkumar Periasamy was named Best Director for Amaran, which also won awards for Best Background Score and Best Editing.
Meanwhile, Sanjay Mishra won Best Supporting Actor for Bhakshak, while Ropashree Varkady (Mithya) and Sachana Namidass (Maharaja) shared the Best Supporting Actress award.
Regional Cinema Receives Recognition
The National Film Awards continued to highlight the diversity of Indian cinema by honouring films from multiple languages.
Feminichi Fathima was named Best Malayalam Film, Srikanth won Best Hindi Film, Raayan received the Best Tamil Film award, while Committee Kurrollu emerged as the Best Telugu Film.
72nd National Film Awards: Major Winners
- Best Feature Film: Article 370
- Best Actor: Mammootty (Bramayugam) and Kartik Aaryan (Chandu Champion)
- Best Actress: Yami Gautam (Article 370)
- Best Director: Rajkumar Periasamy (Amaran)
- Best Supporting Actor: Sanjay Mishra (Bhakshak)
- Best Supporting Actress: Ropashree Varkady (Mithya) and Sachana Namidass (Maharaja)
- Best Feature Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment: Kalki 2898 AD
- Best Film Promoting National, Social Values: Captain Miller
- Best Screenplay: Sukumar (Pushpa 2)
- Best Dialogue Writer: Venky Atluri (Lucky Baskhar)
- Best Cinematography: Shehnad Jalaal (Bramayugam)
- Best Production Design: Kalki 2898 AD
- Best Costume Design: Deepali Noor and Sheetal Sharma (Pushpa 2)
- Best Music Direction (Songs): Shashwat Sachdev (Article 370)
- Best Music Direction (Background Score): Amaran
- Best Male Playback Singer: Abhay Jodhpurkar
- Best Female Playback Singer: Vaikom Vijayalakshmi
- Best Choreography: Stree 2
- Best Sound Design: Bhool Bhulaiya 3
- Best Editing: Amaran
Winners Across Regional Languages
The awards also recognised outstanding regional films:
- Best Hindi Film: Srikanth
- Best Malayalam Film: Feminichi Fathima
- Best Tamil Film: Raayan
- Best Telugu Film: Committee Kurrollu
- Best Kannada Film: Mithya
- Best Bengali Film: Chalchitra Ekhon
- Best Marathi Film: Mukkam Post Bombilwadi
- Best Odia Film: Lahari
- Best Gujarati Film: Maaran
- Best Manipuri Film: Sunita
- Best Konkani Film: Mog Asum
Non-Feature Film Awards
In the non-feature section, Bhangaar (Obsolete) won Best Non-Feature Film, while Ram-Nami received the Best Documentary award. Hamsafar was honoured as Best Short Film, and Touched as Water won Best Animation Film.
The 72nd National Film Awards recognised excellence across feature films, documentaries, regional cinema, music, performances, and technical crafts, highlighting the diverse storytelling that continues to shape Indian cinema.
