In a grand ceremony held in New Delhi on October 8, 2024, President Droupadi Murmu presented the prestigious 70th National Film Awards, acknowledging remarkable achievements across diverse categories in the Indian film industry. This year, the spotlight was on veteran actor Mithun Chakraborty, who was honored with the Dadasaheb Phalke Lifetime Achievement Award for his extraordinary contributions to Indian cinema over several decades.
During her address, President Murmu highlighted a notable disparity—only 15 of the 85 recipients were women. She urged the film industry to enhance efforts towards women-led development, emphasizing that films and social media wield significant influence in fostering societal change. The ceremony was graced by the presence of Information & Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, L. Murugan. Minister Vaishnaw seized the moment to announce the government’s plans to establish the Indian Institute of Creative Technology (IICT) in Mumbai, modeled after the prestigious IITs and IIMs, aimed at nurturing creative skills and expanding knowledge.
The assembly of awardees featured exemplary talents and innovative narratives from various linguistic backgrounds. In the Best Feature Film category, the Malayalam film “Aattam (The Play),” directed by Anand Ekarshi, took top honors. Concurrently, “Ayena (Mirror),” directed by Siddhant Sarin, was recognized as the Best Non-Feature Film. Rishab Shetty’s powerful performance in “Kantara” (Kannada) earned him the Best Actor in a Leading Role accolade, while Nithya Menen was honored for her role in “Thiruchitrambalam” (Tamil), and Manasi Parekh in “Kutch Express” (Gujarati); both shared the award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. The award for Best Direction was bestowed upon Sooraj R. Barjatya for the Hindi film “Uunchai.”
Highlighting technical and narrative brilliance, “Brahmastra – Part 1: Shiva” triumphed in the Best Film in Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming & Comic category. Meanwhile, “Kantara” was celebrated as the Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. In literature, “Kishore Kumar: The Ultimate Biography” was recognized as the Best Book on Cinema.
The film “Aattam” also garnered awards for Best Editing by Mahesh Bhuvanend and shared the Best Screenplay honor with “Gulmohar,” a Hindi film by Arpita Mukherjee and Rahul V.
. Chittella. The choreography in “Thiruchitrambalam” by Sathish Krishnan earned acclaim as the Best Choreography award recipient, while “Gulmohar” was singled out as the Best Hindi Film. Additionally, Niki Joshi was awarded Best Costume Designer for her work on “Kutch Express.”
In the supporting role categories, Pavan Raj Malhotra was lauded as Best Supporting Actor for “Fouja” (Haryanvi), and Neena Gupta received the Best Supporting Actress Award for her role in “Uunchai: Zenith” (Hindi). “Fouja” also secured recognition as the Best Debut Film.
Music maestro A. R. Rahman received the Best Music Director (background music) award for his work on Mani Ratnam’s “Ponnyin Selvan-Part 1” (Tamil), a film that also excelled as the Best Tamil Film, clinching awards for Best Cinematography by Ravi Varman and Best Sound Design by Anand Krishnamoorthi. Pritam was honored as the Best Music Director (songs). Arijit Singh received the Best Male Playback Singer award for the song “Kesariya” in “Brahmastra-Part 1: Shiva.” The Best Female Playback Singer award went to Padma Shri awardee Bombay Jayashri for “Chaayum Veyil” in “Saudi Vellaka CC 225/2009,” a film that also won Best Malayalam Film.
Veteran actor Manoj Bajpayee was the recipient of a Special Mention in this year’s awards for his outstanding performance in the film ‘Gulmohar.’ The dynamic action duo Anbumani and Arivumani, collectively known as Anbariv, earned the award for Best Action Direction (stunt choreography), showcasing commendable skill in cinematography and action design.
In the category of Child Artists, Sreepath captured hearts and the Best Child Artist award for his role in “Malikapurram” (Malayalam). Acclaimed filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj secured the Best Music Director award for the short film “Fursat.” The Best Film Critic accolade was bestowed upon Deepak Dua, with “Murmurs Of The Jungle” (Marathi) triumphing as the Best Documentary.
The 70th National Film Awards celebrated not only the outstanding achievements of these artists but also shone a light on the evolving landscape of Indian cinema, urging a balance in representation and creativity across gender and language barriers.
