Ekta Nagar.
The 72nd National Film Awards ceremony was held in Kevadia, Gujarat, on Tuesday. President Droupadi Murmu presented actress Yami Gautam with the National Film Award for Article 370 and actor Kartik Aaryan for his performance in Chandu Champion.
Kartik Aaryan attended the ceremony with his parents to receive the Best Actor award, while Yami Gautam arrived with her husband, filmmaker Aditya Dhar. The Hindi film Article 370 also won the award for Best Feature Film, which was received by producer Aditya Dhar.
Randeep Hooda received the award for Best Debut Director for the Hindi film Swatantrya Veer Savarkar. The Telugu film Kalki 2898 AD, directed by Nag Ashwin, won the award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment.
Mammootty Shares Best Actor Award
Malayalam cinema veteran Mammootty received the Best Actor award for Bramayugam, sharing the honor with Kartik Aaryan.
Sanjay Mishra won Best Supporting Actor for the Hindi film Bhakshak. Veteran actor Anant Nag was presented with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for his contribution to Indian cinema.
Manoj Muntashir won the Best Lyricist award for the song Jaane Do from Maidaan, while Vijay Ganguly received the Best Choreography award for Aaj Ki Raat from Stree 2, featuring Tamannaah Bhatia.
Awards Across Regional Cinema
The documentary Ram Nami, based on the Ramnami community of Chhattisgarh, won the award for Best Documentary. Main Nida was honored as the Best Art/Cultural Film.
Manveer Jasrotia received the Best Editing award for the Hindi film NDA. Soundarya Jayachandran won the Best Voice Over award for the English film Little Planet: A Tale of Frogs.
Sanjeev Srivastava was named Best Film Critic, while director Dinesh Pundalik Bhonsle received the Rajat Kamal for Best Garhwali Film for Dholi.
The Tamil film Raayan, written and directed by Dhanush, won the award for Best Tamil Feature Film.
Child Artists and Playback Singer Honored
Atish S. Shetty for the Kannada film Mithya, Arundev Pothula for the Telugu film 35 Chinna Katha Kadu, and Riddhiman Banerjee, Tapomay Deb and Geetashree Chakraborty for the Bengali film Onko Ki Kothin were honored in the Best Child Artist category.
Vaikom Vijayalakshmi received the Best Female Playback Singer award for Angu Vaana Konilu from the Malayalam film ARM.
Ashwini Vaishnaw Thanks Jury
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the National Film Awards ceremony was being held near the Statue of Unity in Ekta Nagar. He thanked President Droupadi Murmu for attending the ceremony and appreciated the jury members for their extensive work in reviewing and discussing the films.
Speaking about hosting the ceremony outside Delhi, Vaishnaw said the objective was to take the event to major tourist destinations across the country. He said another tourist destination could host the ceremony next year and invited states to suggest prominent locations.
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said hosting the National Film Awards in Ekta Nagar for the first time was a matter of pride. He described cinema as not only a form of entertainment but also a reflection of society.
