By Pavan Sharma 
The National Film Awards are among the most prestigious honors in Indian cinema. Organized by the Government of India, these awards recognize the best talents across the film industry — from direction and acting to screenplay, music, and technical excellence. Every year, this grand celebration brings together India’s vibrant film community under one roof to appreciate art, creativity, and storytelling. The National Film Awards were first introduced in 1954 and are presented by the Directorate of Film Festivals, under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. These awards aim to encourage the production of films of high artistic and technical value.
Unlike popular film awards, the National Film Awards are government-backed and judged by a national panel of cinema experts, ensuring unbiased recognition of real talent.
Categories in the National Film Awards:
Why the National Film Awards Matter
The National Film Awards are different from commercial award shows. Here’s why they are highly respected:
- Unbiased Judgment: Winners are selected by a jury of experts, not by public votes.
- Pan-India Representation: Films from all regions and languages get equal opportunity and recognition.
- Encouragement to New Talent: Independent and small-budget films often shine here.
- Support to Regional Cinema: Languages like Marathi, Malayalam, Bengali, Tamil, Assamese, and others receive dedicated awards.
71th National Film Awards 2025 list:
| Best Feature Film | 12th Fail – Vinod Chopra Films, Vidhu Vinod Chopra |
| Best Debut Film of a Director | Ashish Avinash Bende – Aatmapamphlet |
| Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment | Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani – Dharma Productions, Karan Johar |
| Best Children’s Film | Naal 2 – Aatpat Production, Zee Studios, Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti |
| Best Direction | Sudipto Sen – The Kerala Story |
| Best Film in AVGC (Best Visual Effects) | Jetty Venkat Kumar – Hanu-Man |
| Best Feature Film Promoting National, Social and Environmental Values | Sam Bahadur – Unilazer Ventures, Meghna Gulzar |
| Best Actor in a Leading Role | Shah Rukh Khan – Jawan / Vikrant Massey – 12th Fail |
| Best Actress in a Leading Role | Rani Mukerji – Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway |
| Best Actor in a Supporting Role | Vijayaraghavan – Pookkaalam / M. S. Bhaskar – Parking |
| Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Urvashi – Ullozhukku / Janki Bodiwala – Vash |
| Best Child Artist | Sukriti Veni Bandreddi – Gandhi Tatha Chettu / Kabir Khandare – Gypsy / Treesha Thosar, Shrinivas Pokale, Bhargav Jagtap – Naal 2 |
| Best Male Playback Singer | P V N S Rohit – Baby (Premistunna) |
| Best Female Playback Singer | Shilpa Rao – Jawan (Chaleya) |
| Best Cinematography | Prasantanu Mohapatra – The Kerala Story |
| Best Screenplay (Original) | Sai Rajesh – Baby / Ramkumar Balakrishnan – Parking |
| Best Dialogues | Deepak Kingrani – Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai |
| Best Sound Design | Sachin Sudhakaran, Hariharan Muralidharan – Animal |
| Best Editing | Midhun Murali – Pookkaalam |
| Best Production Design | Mohandas – 2018 |
| Best Costume Design | Sachin Lovalekar, Divvya Gambhir, Nidhhi Gambhir – Sam Bahadur |
| Best Make-up | Shrikant Desai – Sam Bahadur |
| Best Music Direction (Songs) | G. V. Prakash Kumar – Vaathi |
| Best Music Direction (Background Score) | Harshavardhan Rameshwar – Animal |
| Best Lyrics | Kasarla Shyam – Balagam (Ooru Palletooru) |
| Best Choreography | Vaibhavi Merchant – Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (Dhindhora Baje Re) |
| Best Stunt Choreography | Nandu Prudhvi – Hanu-Man |
| Best Assamese Feature Film | Rongatapu 1982 – BRC Cine Production, Adityam Saikia |
| Best Bengali Feature Film | Deep Fridge – Colors of Dream Entertainment, Arjunn Dutta |
| Best Gujarati Feature Film | Vash – Big Box Series Production, KS Entertainment, Krishnadev Yagnik |
| Best Hindi Feature Film | Kathal – Netflix, Balaji, Sikhya, Yashowardhan Mishra |
| Best Kannada Feature Film | Kandeelu – Swastik Entertainment, Yeshoda Prakash Kottukathira |
| Best Malayalam Feature Film | Ullozhukku – Unilazer, MacGuffin Pictures, Christo Tomy |
| Best Marathi Feature Film | Shyamchi Aai – Amruta Films, Sujay Dahake |
| Best Odia Feature Film | Pushkara – Tarang Cine Productions, Subhransu Das |
| Best Punjabi Feature Film | Godday Godday Chaa – VH Entertainment, Zee Studios, Vijay Kumar Arora |
| Best Tamil Feature Film | Parking – Passion Studios, Soldiers Factory, Ramkumar Balakrishnan |
| Best Telugu Feature Film | Bhagavanth Kesari – Shine Screens, Anil Ravipudi |
| Best Garo Feature Film | Rimdogittanga – Anna Films, Uncombed Buddha, Joicy Studio, Dominic Sangma |
| Best Tai Phake Feature Film | Pai Tang – Naba Kumar Bhuyan, Prabal Khaund |
| Special Mention | Animal – M. R. Rajakrishnan |
| Best Non-Feature Film | Flowering Man – FTII, Soumyajit Ghosh Dastidar |
| Best Direction (Non-Feature) | Piyush Thakur – The First Film |
| Best Debut Director (Non-Feature) | Shilpika Bordoloi – Mau: The Spirit Dreams of Cheraw |
| Best Biographical Film | Mo Bou, Mo Gaan – Subash Sahoo / Lentina Ao – Sanjib Parasar |
| Best Arts / Cultural Film | Timeless Tamil Nadu – Kamakhya Narayan Singh |
| Best Documentary | God Vulture and Human – Rishiraj Agarwal |
| Best Non Feature Film Promoting Social Values | The Silent Epidemic – Akshat Gupta |
| Best Short Film | Giddh (The Scavenger) – Manish Saini |
| Best Cinematography (Non-Feature) | Little Wings – Saravanamaruthu Soundarapandi, Meenakshi Soman |
| Best Sound Design (Non-Feature) | Dhundhgiri Ke Phool – Shubharun Sengupta |
| Best Editing (Non-Feature) | Moving Focus – Niladri Roy |
| Best Music Direction (Non-Feature) | Pranil Desai – The First Film |
| Best Narration / Voice Over | Harikrishnan S – The Sacred – Jack Exploring the Tree of Wishes |
| Best Script | Chidananda S. Naik – Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know… |
| Special Mention (Non-Feature) | Nekal – M K Ramadas / The Sea & Seven Villages – Himansu Sekhar Khatua |
| Best Film Critic | Utpal Datta |
The National Film Awards 2025 once again showed us why they are India’ most respected film awards. They remind us that cinema is not just about big stars and box office numbers — it’s about emotions, ideas, and creative vision. Whether you’re a movie lover or a budding filmmaker, the National Film Awards are a proud moment for every Indian. Let’s celebrate the stories, the passion, and the people behind the scenes who make our cinema world-class.
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