71st National Film Awards Winners & Highlights

What It Is

The National Film Awards are India’s premier film honours, organized by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting via the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC). They recognize excellence across feature films, non-feature films, and writing on cinema.

Key Dates & Eligibility

• The awards are for films, works in non-feature cinema, and writing on cinema from the period 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023.

• Entries had to be certified by the Central Board of Film Certification, and submissions were open online until 18 September 2024. Hard copies followed soon after.

• The announcement of winners took place on 1 August 2025, and the presentation ceremony was held on 23 September 2025, at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.

Major Winners & Highlights

Other Notable Awards & Facts

• • Animal won 3 awards, including Best Sound Design (Sachin Sudhakaran & Hariharan Muralidharan), Best Background Music (Harshavardhan Rameshwar), and a Special Mention for Re-Recording Mixer.

    • Lead actors: Ranbir Kapoor and Rashmika Mandanna, Bobby Deol (with Tripti Dimri in a pivotal supporting role)

  • Parking won 3 awards: Best Tamil Feature Film, Best Supporting Actor (M. S. Bhaskar), and Best Screenplay for Ramkumar Balakrishnan.

    • Lead actors: Harish Kalyan and Indhuja Ravichandran.

  • Sam Bahadur also won 3 awards: Best Makeup, Best Costume Design, Best Feature Film Promoting National, Social, and Environmental Values.

    • Lead actors: Vicky Kaushal, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Sanya Malhotra.

  • Flowering Man won Best Non-Feature Film (Golden Lotus) for its producer (Film and Television Institute of India) and director Soumyajit Ghosh Dastidar.

  • Utpal Datta won the Best Critic award.

Ceremony & Prize Details

• The ceremony was presided over by President Droupadi Murmu.

• Each winner received a medal (Golden Lotus / Swarna Kamal or Silver Lotus / Rajat Kamal), a certificate, and cash prize (varies by category). For example, in Best Actor (shared) category, the prize money was ₹2 lakh split between the two winners.

Controversies / Critiques

• The Kerala Story won Best Cinematography, which drew criticism from Kerala’s Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who questioned the decision and claimed ideological bias.

Significance

• This edition of the awards marks Shah Rukh Khan’s first ever National Film Award, an important milestone in his over-30-year career.

• It also continued the tradition of honouring regional cinema and non-feature films—reflecting India’s linguistic and cultural diversity.