The 72nd National Film Awards celebrated achievements across Indian cinema as the prestigious honours were presented at Ekta Nagar, Gujarat, on September 22, 2026. Kartik Aaryan and Mammootty shared the Best Actor award, while Yami Gautam won Best Actress for Article 370. Veteran Kannada actor Anant Nag was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2024 for his contribution to Indian cinema.
Article 370 emerged as the Best Feature Film, while Amaran won Best Direction for Rajkumar Periasamy. Kalki 2898 AD, Captain Miller, Pushpa 2, Stree 2 and several other films also featured among the major winners.
Anant Nag Receives Dadasaheb Phalke Award
One of the biggest moments of the ceremony was Anant Nag receiving the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2024 from President Droupadi Murmu. The honour recognised Nag's longstanding contribution to theatre and cinema.
The veteran actor has worked extensively in Kannada cinema while also appearing in films across different Indian languages. Anant Nag expressed gratitude while accepting the honour and recalled how theatre became the foundation of his career before he moved into films.
Kartik Aaryan And Mammootty Share Best Actor Award
Kartik Aaryan and Mammootty shared the Best Actor in a Leading Role award for Chandu Champion and Bramayugam, respectively. For Kartik, the honour recognised his portrayal of Paralympic gold medallist Murlikant Petkar in Chandu Champion.
Mammootty was recognised for his performance in the Malayalam film Bramayugam. The award marked Mammootty's fourth Best Actor National Film Award. Yami Gautam won Best Actress in a Leading Role for Article 370, which also received the Best Feature Film award.
National Film Awards 2026: Complete Winners List
The official award list covers feature films, non-feature films and writing on cinema. Here is the complete category-wise list, including the regional film honours.
Special Honour
| Category | Winner | Film/Work |
|---|---|---|
| Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2024 | Anant Nag | Lifetime contribution to Indian cinema |
Feature Film Awards
| Category | Winner | Film/Work |
|---|---|---|
| Best Feature Film | Jio Studios & B62 Studios; Director Aditya Suhas Jambhale | Article 370 |
| Best Debut Film of a Director | Randeep Hooda | Swatantrya Veer Savarkar |
| Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment | Vyjayanthi Movies; Director Nag Ashwin | Kalki 2898 AD |
| Best Feature Film Promoting National, Social and Environmental Values | Sathya Jyothi Films; Director Arun Matheswaran | Captain Miller |
| Best Children's Film | S Originals & Waltair Productions; Director Nanda Kishore Emani | 35 – Chinna Katha Kaadu |
| Best Direction | Rajkumar Periasamy | Amaran |
| Best Actor in a Leading Role | Mammootty | Bramayugam |
| Best Actor in a Leading Role | Kartik Aaryan | Chandu Champion |
| Best Actress in a Leading Role | Yami Gautam | Article 370 |
| Best Actor in a Supporting Role | Sanjay Mishra | Bhakshak |
| Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Sachana Namidass | Maharaja |
| Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Ropashree Varkady | Mithya |
| Best Child Artist | Athish S Shetty | Mithya |
| Best Child Artist | Arundev Pothula | 35 – Chinna Katha Kaadu |
| Best Child Artist | Riddhiman Banerjee, Tapomoy Deb, Gitashree Chakraborty | Onko Ki Kothin |
| Best Male Playback Singer | Abhay Jodhpurkar | “Navasachi Gauri Mazi” – Gharat Ganpati |
| Best Female Playback Singer | Vaikom Vijayalakshmi | “Angu Vaana Konilu” – A.R.M |
| Best Cinematography | Shehnad Jalal | Bramayugam |
| Best Original Screenplay | Bandreddi Sukumar | Pushpa 2: The Rule |
| Best Adapted Screenplay | Yogesh Deshpande | Swargandharva Sudhir Phadke |
| Best Dialogue Writer | Venky Atluri | Lucky Baskhar |
| Best Sound Design | Manas Choudhury | Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 |
| Best Editing | R. Kalaivannan | Amaran |
| Best Production Design | Nitin Zihani Choudhary | Kalki 2898 AD |
| Best Costume Design | Deepali Noor & Sheetal Sharma | Pushpa 2: The Rule |
| Best Make-Up | P Ravi Kumar | Committee Kurrollu |
| Best Music Direction – Songs | Shashwat Sachdev | Article 370 |
| Best Music Direction – Background Music | G. V. Prakash Kumar | Amaran |
| Best Lyrics | Manoj Muntashir | “Jaane Do” – Maidaan |
| Best Choreography | Vijay Ganguly | “Aaj Ki Raat” – Stree 2 |
| Best Action Direction | Anl Arasu | Maharaja |
| Best Assamese Film | Juiphool | Assamese |
| Best Bengali Film | Chalchitra Ekhon | Bengali |
| Best Gujarati Film | Maaran | Gujarati |
| Best Hindi Film | Srikanth | Hindi |
| Best Kannada Film | Mithya | Kannada |
| Best Konkani Film | Mog Asum | Konkani |
| Best Malayalam Film | Feminichi Fathima | Malayalam |
| Best Manipuri Film | Sunita | Manipuri |
| Best Marathi Film | Mukkam Post Bombilwadi | Marathi |
| Best Odia Film | Lahari | Odia |
| Best Tamil Film | Raayan | Tamil |
| Best Telugu Film | Committee Kurrollu | Telugu |
| Best Garhwali Film | Dholi | Garhwali |
| Best Tulu Film | IMBU | Tulu |
| Special Mention | Dhanush | Captain Miller |
| Special Mention | Suren G. | Meiyazhagan |
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Non-Feature Film Awards
| Category | Winner | Film/Work |
|---|---|---|
| Best Non-Feature Film | Sumira Roy | Bhangaar |
| Best Debut Film of a Director | Ravi Raj Murmu | Angen |
| Best Biographical/Historical Reconstruction/Compilation Film | KSR Brothers, Minti Mishra & Kamlesh K Mishra | Kakori |
| Best Arts/Culture Film | Sampreshan Multimedia & Atul Pandey | Main Nida |
| Best Documentary | Bharatbala Ganapathy / BBP Studio Virtual Bharat | Ram-Nami |
| Best Non-Feature Film Promoting Social and Environmental Values | Suraj Kumar / Johnsons Suraj Films International | Piplantri: A Tale of Eco Feminism |
| Best Animation Film | Joshy Benedict / JB Productions | Touched as Water |
| Best Short Film | Abhijeet Arvind Dalvi / Anushka Motion Pictures and Entertainments | Hamsafar |
| Best Direction | Aanand L Rai | Statue of Unity – Ekta Ka Prateek |
| Best Cinematography | Edmond Ranson | Life in Loom |
| Best Sound Design | T S Hari Hara Sudhan | Blue |
| Best Editing | Manvir Jasrotia | NDA |
| Best Music Direction | Shivpal Singh Kang | Parat 41°chya Magavar |
| Best Narration/Voice Over | Soundarya Jayachandran | Little Planet: A Tale of Frogs |
| Best Script | Faraz Ali | Obur |
| Special Mention | Ananda Jyothi (Jose Antony) | Bhadra-Kali Natakam |
| Special Mention | Jaymin Modi & Lokesh Ghai | Chola Dora aur Sui |
Best Writing On Cinema
| Category | Winner | Work |
|---|---|---|
| Best Book on Cinema | Kenchanuru Pradeep Kumar Shetty | Naaniruvude Nimagaagi Naadiruvude Nanagaagi: Kannada Cinemada Thathva Matthu Rajakeeya |
| Best Film Critic | Sanjeev Shrivastava | Film Criticism |
The book award went to Kenchanuru Pradeep Kumar Shetty, while Sanjeev Shrivastava received the Best Film Critic honour.
Article 370, Amaran And Regional Cinema Lead The Honours
Beyond the headline acting wins, the 72nd National Film Awards reflected the breadth of Indian cinema. Article 370 took Best Feature Film and Best Actress, Amaran won Best Direction along with awards in music and editing, while Kalki 2898 AD was recognised for popular entertainment and production design.
The regional categories also brought films from Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Odia, Tamil, Telugu, Garhwali and Tulu cinema into the national spotlight. The official release specifically highlighted the recognition of Garhwali and Tulu cinema alongside the other regional categories.
Final Take
The National Film Awards 2026 brought together major stars, acclaimed filmmakers, technical artists and regional voices. Anant Nag's Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the shared Best Actor honour for Kartik Aaryan and Mammootty, and Yami Gautam's Best Actress win were among the biggest moments, while the complete winners list underlined the wide range of Indian cinema recognised at the 72nd edition.
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