Our Bureau
New Delhi
The 70th National Film Awards, announced on August 16, 2024, recognized the outstanding achievements in Indian cinema for the year 2022. The awards, under the aegis of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, honors films, actors, and technicians from various regional industries, showcasing the diversity and talent of the Indian film landscape.
The awards featured a diverse array of films, with the Malayalam film Aattam winning the prestigious Best Feature Film award. Sooraj Barjatya was named Best Director for his work on the Hindi film Uunchai, while Rishab Shetty (Kantara), Nithya Menen (Thiruchitrambalam), and Manasi Parekh (Kutch Express) took home the Best Actor and Best Actress awards. The Gujarati film Kutch Express was recognized for Best Film Promoting Social Values.
In the music categories, Pritam won the Best Music Direction (Songs) for Brahmastra Part 1, while AR Rahman was awarded the Best Music Direction (Background Score) for Ponniyin Selvan – Part 1.
The feature film awards highlighted the richness of regional cinema, with KGF: Chapter 2 (Kannada) and Ponniyin Selvan – Part 1(Tamil) winning multiple technical awards. Other notable winners included Gulmohar (Hindi), Karthikeya 2 (Telugu), and Saudi Velakka (Malayalam).
The technical awards recognized outstanding contributions in various filmmaking aspects. Aattam won for Best Editing, while Ponniyin Selvan – Part 1 was honored for Best Cinematography and Best Sound Design, while Kutch Express won the Best Costume Design. KGF: Chapter 2 received the award for Best Action Direction, and Thiruchitrambalam was recognized for Best Choreography.
The non-feature film categories also showcased significant talent, with Ayena winning Best Non-Feature Film, Murmurs of the Jungle taking the Best Documentary award, and The Coconut Tree being named Best Animated Film. Miriam Chandy Menacherry was awarded Best Direction (Non-Feature Film) for From the Shadow.
Special mentions were awarded to notable performances and contributions, including Manoj Bajpayee in Gulmohar and Sanjoy Salil Chowdhury for Kadhikan.
