NEW DELHI, Oct 8: President Droupadi Murmu presided over the 70th National Film Awards ceremony today, honoring remarkable achievements in Indian cinema for the year 2022. A key highlight was the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award being presented to iconic actor Mithun Chakraborty in recognition of his significant contributions to the industry.
The event was attended by Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Minister of State Dr. L. Murugan. During her speech, President Murmu praised Chakraborty’s influential role in the film sector and noted that the awarded films signify positive changes in society.
Minister Vaishnaw discussed the government’s dedication to advancing the film industry through a three-pronged approach focused on Talent Development, Infrastructure, and Simplification. He acknowledged that the films celebrated today were produced during the pandemic, demonstrating resilience and creativity, and highlighted the achievement of nine debut directors recognized for their courageous storytelling.
Sanjay Jaju, Secretary of Information and Broadcasting, shared that the Ministry received a total of 309 submissions for feature films in 32 languages and 128 non-feature films in 17 languages for this year’s awards.
The Dadasaheb Phalke Lifetime Achievement Award honors Mithun Chakraborty not only for his artistic talents but also for his lasting legacy as a compassionate individual who has positively impacted many lives. In other award categories, Rishab Shetty won Best Actor for his exceptional performance in the Kannada film Kantara, while Nithya Menen received Best Actress for the Tamil film Thiruchitrambalam, and Manasi Parekh was recognized for her role in the Gujarati film Kutch Express.
Film critic Deepak Dua received the Golden Lotus Award, and Anirudha Bhattacharjee and Parthiv Dhar were recognized for their book Kishore Kumar: The Ultimate Biography. The award for Best Feature Film went to the Malayalam film Aattam, with Ayena being named Best Non-Feature Film. Sooraj Barjatya was awarded Best Director for Uunchai. The Best Hindi Film award went to Gulmohar, while the Haryanvi film Fouja received Best Lyrics in the non-feature film category.
Manoj Bajpayee earned a ‘Special Mention’ for Gulmohar, and Karan Johar received the ‘Best Film in AVGC’ award for Brahmastra Part-I. In the music category, Arijit Singh was honored as Best Male Playback Singer, and Bombay Jayashri received the Best Female Playback Singer award. Additionally, other notable films, including Ponniyin Selvan Part I, KGF 2, Brahmastra, Aparajito, Emuthi Puthi, Kaberi Antardhan, Daman, and Baghi Di Dhee, were acknowledged for their contributions to Indian cinema.
