72nd National Film Awards: ‘Article 370’ Named Best Film; Mammootty, Kartik Aaryan, and Yami Gautam Win Top Acting Honours
NEW DELHI — The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting announced the winners of the 72nd National Film Awards, celebrating the finest achievements in Indian cinema certified during the 2024 calendar year. The politically charged drama Article 370 emerged as the biggest winner of the evening, securing the coveted Best Feature Film award.
Top Acting Honours Shared
The Best Actor in a Leading Role category saw a historic split between two powerhouse performances from completely different corners of Indian cinema:
Mammootty clinched his fourth career National Award for his menacing role in the Malayalam psychological horror-thriller Bramayugam.
Kartik Aaryan earned his first-ever National Award for his committed portrayal of real-life Paralympic gold medalist Murlikant Petkar in the sports biopic Chandu Champion.
Yami Gautam was named Best Actress for her riveting performance as an intelligence officer in Article 370, capping off a stellar night for the feature film.
“Every journey has a moment that reminds you why you never gave up. Today is that moment for me. Receiving the National Award for Article 370 is an honour I will cherish for the rest of my life.”
— Yami Gautam via social media
Direction and Supporting Categories
The film jury, chaired by acclaimed Malayalam filmmaker Jayaraj, announced key wins across direction and supporting talent:
Best Direction: Rajkumar Periasamy for the Tamil biographical war drama Amaran.
Best Supporting Actor: Sanjay Mishra for his role in Bhakshak.
Best Supporting Actress: Shared by Sachana Namidass (Maharaja) and Ropashree Varkady (Mithya).
Best Music Direction: Shashwat Sachdev (Songs for Article 370) and G.V. Prakash Kumar (Background Score for Amaran).
Best Playback Singers: Abhay Jodhpurkar and Vaikom Vijayalakshmi.
Popular Entertainment and Regional Winners
The Telugu sci-fi epic Kalki 2898 AD was honored as the Best Feature Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment, also picking up a win for Best Production Design. Meanwhile, Dhanush’s Captain Miller bagged the award for Best Film Promoting National, Social, and Environmental Values.
In the Non-Feature Film category, chaired by Asim Kumar Sinha, Bhangaar (directed by Sumira Roy) took home the Best Non-Feature Film Award, while Hamasafar (Marathi) won Best Short Film. Master filmmaker Aanand L. Rai won the Best Direction award for the documentary Statue of Unity-Ekta Ka Prateek.
Best Regional Films at a Glance:
Language / RegionWinning FilmHindi Srikanth Tamil Raayan Telugu Committee Kurrollu Malayalam Feminichi Fathima Kannada Mithya Marathi Mukkam Post Bombilwadi Gujarati Maaran Odia Lahari Manipuri Sunita Garhwali Dholi