Entertainment · National Film Awards 2026
72nd National Film Awards 2026: Raayan, Amaran Win Big
Article 370 was named Best Feature Film at the 72nd National Film Awards, announced in New Delhi on July 18 after a two-week delay. Mammootty and Kartik Aaryan shared Best Actor, Yami Gautam took Best Actress, and Tamil cinema had its strongest night in years with Raayan, Amaran, and Captain Miller all picking up honours. Two of the most talked-about Tamil films of the eligibility window, Meiyazhagan and Maharaja, left with only technical awards.
Key Takeaways
- Best Feature Film: Article 370 (director Aditya Suhas Jambhale), which also won Yami Gautam Best Actress.
- Best Actor was shared by Mammootty for Bramayugam and Kartik Aaryan for Chandu Champion.
- Amaran was the biggest Tamil winner by count, taking three awards: Best Director, Best Music Direction, and Best Editing.
- Raayan, directed by and starring Dhanush, won Best Tamil Film; Dhanush also picked up a Special Mention for Captain Miller.
- Meiyazhagan got a Special Mention for Sound Mixing and Maharaja won Best Action Direction — both well short of the Best Film, Best Actor, or Best Director recognition many expected.
- The awards, decided by an 11-member jury chaired by filmmaker Jayaraj, cover films certified by the CBFC between January 1 and December 31, 2024.
The National Film Awards rarely arrive on schedule, and this year was no exception. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting announced the 72nd edition roughly two weeks later than expected, at a press briefing in New Delhi on Saturday, July 18. What came out of that delay was one of the more Tamil-cinema-heavy award lists in recent memory, even if not every acclaimed film from the eligibility year got the recognition its fans were hoping for.
Article 370 Takes the Top Prize
Aditya Suhas Jambhale's Article 370 walked away as the single biggest winner of the ceremony. The film, which follows an intelligence officer navigating the security fallout around the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, won Best Feature Film. Yami Gautam, who plays that officer, took home Best Actress for a performance built more on restraint and procedural tension than melodrama. Composer Shashwat Sachdev added a third award for the film, winning Best Music Direction for Songs.
It's a fairly conventional pick for the top award: a political thriller with a real historical anchor, backed by a jury that has often favoured films tackling national security or social themes. Whether general audiences remember Article 370 the way they remember some of this year's bigger Tamil and Telugu titles is a separate question, and one the jury doesn't have to answer.
Mammootty and Kartik Aaryan Share Best Actor
The Best Actor award was split two ways this year. Mammootty won for Bramayugam, Rahul Sadasivan's black-and-white Malayalam horror film built almost entirely around a claustrophobic power struggle inside a decaying house. It's the veteran actor's fourth National Award, and arguably his most unconventional role in years, a performance that trades his usual commanding screen presence for something colder and more unsettling.
Kartik Aaryan shared the honour for Chandu Champion, where he played Paralympic gold medallist Murlikant Petkar. Sports biopics are something of a safe bet at these awards, and Aaryan's physical transformation for the role clearly registered with the jury, even if critics were split on how much the film leaned on biopic formula.
Tamil Cinema's Biggest Night: Amaran, Raayan, and Captain Miller
If there's a clear regional story out of this year's awards, it's Tamil cinema having an unusually strong showing. Three films, Amaran, Raayan, and Captain Miller, accounted for a large share of the technical and craft categories.
Amaran's Three Wins
Amaran, based on the life of Major Mukund Varadarajan, the Ashok Chakra recipient killed fighting militants in Jammu and Kashmir, ended up as the single most-awarded Tamil film. Director Rajkumar Periasamy won Best Director, G.V. Prakash Kumar took Best Music Direction for the film's background score, and R. Kalaivanan won Best Editing. Lead actor Sivakarthikeyan called it "a proud day for the entire Amaran family" in a post congratulating his collaborators, and it's easy to see why: three wins across direction, music, and editing is a rare sweep for a single film in one edition of these awards.
"I was just informed of my award over the phone and it feels surreal. Amaran deserves it, because the film gave me everything." — G.V. Prakash Kumar, on winning Best Music Direction for Amaran
Raayan Named Best Tamil Film
Dhanush had a genuinely unusual year at these awards. His directorial debut Raayan, in which he also plays the lead, was named Best Tamil Film. Separately, his acting in Captain Miller earned him a Special Mention, and Captain Miller itself, directed by Arun Matheswaran, won Best Feature Film Promoting National, Social and Environmental Values. Speaking about the win, Matheswaran said he hadn't expected the recognition given the film's modest box office run: "We make a film believing it would reach a larger audience upon release. Captain Miller didn't commercially go the way we wanted, but this recognition shows the effort was worth it."
Why Meiyazhagan and Maharaja Missed the Marquee Categories
Here's the part of the list that's likely to generate the most debate. Meiyazhagan, C. Prem Kumar's slow-burn drama starring Arvind Swamy and Karthi, was one of 2024's most critically praised Tamil releases and picked up multiple Filmfare South nominations for its lead performances. At the National Film Awards, it received a single Special Mention, for Suren G's sound mixing. No nod for Best Actor, Best Director, or Best Film.
Maharaja fared similarly. Vijay Sethupathi's revenge thriller was widely praised for its structure and its lead performance, but its only National Award recognition was Best Action Direction, going to Anl Arasu for the film's fight choreography. Again: a genuine, deserved technical win, but not the kind of recognition that reflects how much attention the film's storytelling and central performance got when it released.
None of this is unusual for the National Film Awards specifically. The jury tends to favour films with overt social or historical themes for the top categories, which has meant that character-driven dramas and genre films, however well-reviewed, often end up winning technical honours instead of the marquee ones. Meiyazhagan and Maharaja both fit that pattern this year.
Full List of Major Winners
| Category | Winner | Film |
|---|---|---|
| Best Feature Film | Aditya Suhas Jambhale (Director) | Article 370 |
| Best Actor | Mammootty / Kartik Aaryan | Bramayugam / Chandu Champion |
| Best Actress | Yami Gautam | Article 370 |
| Best Supporting Actor | Sanjay Mishra | Bhakshak |
| Best Director (regional) | Rajkumar Periasamy | Amaran |
| Best Debut Film of a Director | Randeep Hooda | Swatantrya Veer Savarkar |
| Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment | Nag Ashwin (Director) | Kalki 2898 AD |
| Best Feature Film Promoting National, Social & Environmental Values | Arun Matheswaran (Director) | Captain Miller |
| Best Tamil Film | Dhanush (Director) | Raayan |
| Best Telugu Film | Yadhu Vamsee (Director) | Committee Kurrollu |
| Best Malayalam Film | Fasil Muhammed (Director) | Feminichi Fathima |
| Best Hindi Film | — | Srikanth |
| Best Kannada Film | Sumanth Bhat (Director) | Mithya |
| Best Music Direction (Background Score) | G.V. Prakash Kumar | Amaran |
| Best Music Direction (Songs) | Shashwat Sachdev | Article 370 |
| Best Lyrics | Manoj Muntashir, "Jaane Do" | Maidaan |
| Best Male Playback Singer | Abhay Jodhpurkar | Gharat Ganpati |
| Best Female Playback Singer | Vaikom Vijayalakshmi, "Angu Vaana Konilu" | ARM |
| Best Cinematography | Shehnad Jalal | Bramayugam |
| Best Editing | R. Kalaivanan | Amaran |
| Best Production Design | Nitin Zihani Choudhary | Kalki 2898 AD |
| Best Costume Design | Deepali Noor, Sheetal Sharma | Pushpa 2: The Rule |
| Best Action Direction | Anl Arasu | Maharaja |
| Best Choreography | Vijay Ganguly | Stree 2 |
| Best Original Screenplay | Bandreddi Sukumar | Pushpa 2: The Rule |
| Best Screenplay (Dialogue) | Venky Atluri | Lucky Bhaskar |
| Special Mention | Suren G (Sound Mixing) / Dhanush (Acting) | Meiyazhagan / Captain Miller |
Regional Language Film Winners
| Language | Film | Director / Credit |
|---|---|---|
| Assamese | Juiphool | Jadumoni Dutta |
| Bengali | Chalchitra Ekhon | Anjan Dutt |
| Gujarati | Maaran | Abhishek Jain |
| Kannada | Mithya | Sumanth Bhat |
| Konkani | Mog Asum | — |
| Malayalam | Feminichi Fathima | Fasil Muhammed |
| Manipuri | Sunita | Yumnam Ajit Singh |
| Marathi | Mukkam Post Bombilwadi | Paresh Mokashi |
| Odia | Lahari | Amartya Bhattacharyya |
| Tamil | Raayan | Dhanush |
| Telugu | Committee Kurrollu | Yadhu Vamsee |
| Garhwali | Dholi | Dinesh P. Bhonsle |
| Tulu | IMBU | Shivdhwaj Studio |
Beyond the feature categories, the jury also recognised younger talent: Arundev Pothula (35 Chinna Katha Kaadu) and the trio of Riddhiman Banerjee, Tapomoy Dev, and Geetashree Chakraborty (Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan) shared Best Child Artist. The full technical and non-feature categories, including documentary and short film awards, are expected to be published on the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting's official portal in the coming days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which film won Best Feature Film at the 72nd National Film Awards?
Article 370, directed by Aditya Suhas Jambhale and starring Yami Gautam, won Best Feature Film. The same film also won Gautam the Best Actress award and Shashwat Sachdev the Best Music Direction (Songs) award.
Who won Best Actor and Best Actress this year?
Mammootty (Bramayugam) and Kartik Aaryan (Chandu Champion) shared Best Actor. Yami Gautam won Best Actress for Article 370.
How many awards did Amaran win?
Three: Best Director for Rajkumar Periasamy, Best Music Direction for G.V. Prakash Kumar, and Best Editing for R. Kalaivanan, making it the most-awarded Tamil film of this edition.
What did Meiyazhagan and Maharaja win?
Meiyazhagan received a Special Mention for Suren G's sound mixing. Maharaja won Best Action Direction for Anl Arasu. Neither film won in a marquee category such as Best Film, Best Actor, or Best Director.
When were the 72nd National Film Awards announced, and for which year?
The awards were announced in New Delhi on July 18, 2026, roughly two weeks later than initially expected. They cover feature films certified by the CBFC between January 1 and December 31, 2024, and were decided by an 11-member jury chaired by filmmaker Jayaraj.
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