The 70th National Film Awards honored the best Indian films certified by the CBFC in the calendar year 2022 across feature, non-feature, and writing categories. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting announced the winners on August 16, 2024. President Droupadi Murmu presented the awards at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi on October 8, 2024.
This complete reference guide covers every category winner. It includes the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the Kantara double win, the Aattam Best Feature Film upset, the joint Best Actress decision, and the complete regional film winners.
Table of Contents
- 70th National Film Awards: Key Facts at a Glance
- Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2024: Mithun Chakraborty
- 70th National Film Awards Feature Film Winners: Complete Table
- Why Did Aattam Win Best Feature Film Over Brahmastra?
- Kantara’s Double Win: Best Actor and Best Popular Film
- 70th National Film Awards Non-Feature Film Winners
- Best Writing on Cinema at the 70th National Film Awards
- Frequently Asked Questions About the 70th National Film Awards
70th National Film Awards: Key Facts at a Glance
The 70th National Film Awards recognized films from 2022 with results announced on August 16, 2024 and the ceremony held on October 8, 2024 at Vigyan Bhavan. President Droupadi Murmu presented the awards administered by the NFDC.
Quick Reference Card:
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Edition | 70th |
| Eligibility Year | Films certified between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022 |
| Administering Body | National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) |
| Announcement Date | August 16, 2024 |
| Ceremony Date | October 8, 2024 |
| Ceremony Venue | Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi |
| Presented By | President Droupadi Murmu |
| Best Feature Film | Aattam (Malayalam) |
| Sections Covered | Feature Films, Non-Feature Films, Writing on Cinema |
Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2024: Mithun Chakraborty
The Dadasaheb Phalke Award recipient for the 70th edition is Mithun Chakraborty, recognizing his extraordinary 48-year journey from his first National Award win in 1976 to India’s highest film honor in 2024.
Mithun Chakraborty began his acting career in Mrinal Sen’s art-house film Mrigayaa (1976). He won the Best Actor National Award for his debut performance. He later transitioned to mainstream Hindi cinema. He achieved global fame with the blockbuster Disco Dancer (1982).
Over five decades, he acted in over 350 films across Hindi, Bengali, Odia, Bhojpuri, and Tamil languages. He successfully reinvented himself through various career phases. He played leading romantic roles, action heroes, and complex villains.
The Dadasaheb Phalke Award includes a Swarna Kamal (Golden Lotus) trophy, a cash prize of Rs 15,00,000, and a shawl. This award brings his career full circle.
Explore the complete Dadasaheb Phalke Award winners list to see all past recipients.
70th National Film Awards Feature Film Winners: Complete Table
The 70th National Film Awards feature film section recognized Aattam as Best Feature Film, Sooraj R. Barjatya as Best Director, and honored top performers across acting, technical, and regional language categories.
Top Honours at the 70th National Film Awards
The Swarna Kamal (Golden Lotus) categories represent the highest honors in the feature film section.
| Category | Winner | Film | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Feature Film | Anand Ekarshi (Director) | Aattam | Malayalam |
| Best Director | Sooraj R. Barjatya | Uunchai | Hindi |
| Best Popular Film | Rishab Shetty (Director) | Kantara | Kannada |
| Best Debut Film of a Director | Pramod Kumar | Fouja | Haryanvi |
| Best Film in AVGC | Ayan Mukerji (Director) | Brahmastra Part 1: Shiva | Hindi |
Film Synopses for Top Winners:
- Aattam: A theatre group actress accuses a colleague of sexual assault. The 13 male group members debate what to do. They expose their own hypocrisy.
- Uunchai: Three friends in their 70s trek to the Everest Base Camp to fulfill their late friend’s last wish.
- Kantara: A forest official clashes with villagers over land rights rooted in an ancient promise to a local folk deity.
Learn more about the history of the Best Feature Film National Award.
Acting and Performance Awards
The acting categories award the Rajat Kamal (Silver Lotus) and Rs 2,00,000 in prize money. The jury made a rare joint decision for Best Actress.
| Category | Winner | Film | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Actor | Rishab Shetty | Kantara | Kannada |
| Best Actress (Joint) | Nithya Menen | Thiruchitrambalam | Tamil |
| Best Actress (Joint) | Manasi Parekh | Kutch Express | Gujarati |
| Best Supporting Actor | Pavan Raj Malhotra | Fouja | Haryanvi |
| Best Supporting Actress | Neena Gupta | Uunchai | Hindi |
| Best Child Artiste | Sreepath | Malikappuram | Malayalam |
- Thiruchitrambalam: A delivery driver struggles with heartbreak and family issues while his best friend Shobana supports him unconditionally.
- Kutch Express: A homemaker discovers her husband’s infidelity. She rebuilds her life and identity with the help of her mother-in-law.
Review the complete Best Actor National Award winners database and the Best Actress National Award complete history.
Music, Playback, and Choreography Awards
These categories recognize excellence in sound and movement. Brahmastra and Ponniyin Selvan dominated this section.
| Category | Winner | Film/Song | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Music Direction (Songs) | Pritam | Brahmastra Part 1: Shiva | Hindi |
| Best Music Direction (Background Score) | A.R. Rahman | Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1 | Tamil |
| Best Male Playback Singer | Arijit Singh | Brahmastra Part 1: Shiva (Kesariya) | Hindi |
| Best Female Playback Singer | Bombay Jayashri | Saudi Vellakka CC 225/2009 | Malayalam |
| Best Choreography | Jani Master & Sathish Krishnan | Thiruchitrambalam (Megham Karukatha) | Tamil |
| Best Lyrics | Naushad Sadar Khan | Fouja | Haryanvi |
Technical Awards at the 70th National Film Awards
The technical awards honor the essential craft behind filmmaking. Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1 won multiple technical Rajat Kamal awards.
| Category | Winner | Film | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Cinematography | Ravi Varman | Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1 | Tamil |
| Best Sound Design | Anand Krishnamoorthi | Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1 | Tamil |
| Best Editing | Mahesh Bhuvanend | Aattam | Malayalam |
| Best Action Direction | Anbariv | KGF Chapter 2 | Kannada |
| Best Screenplay (Original) | Anand Ekarshi | Aattam | Malayalam |
| Best Production Design | Anand Addhya | Aparajito | Bengali |
| Best Costume Design | Niki Joshi | Kutch Express | Gujarati |
| Best Make-up Artist | Somnath Kundu | Aparajito | Bengali |
Best Regional Language Film Winners
The jury awards a Rajat Kamal to the best film in each language specified in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.
| Language | Best Regional Film | Director |
|---|---|---|
| Hindi | Gulmohar | Rahul V. Chittella |
| Tamil | Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1 | Mani Ratnam |
| Kannada | KGF Chapter 2 | Prashanth Neel |
| Telugu | Karthikeya 2 | Chandoo Mondeti |
| Malayalam | Saudi Vellakka CC 225/2009 | Tharun Moorthy |
| Bengali | Kaberi Antardhan | Kaushik Ganguly |
| Marathi | Vaalvi | Paresh Mokashi |
| Odia | Daman | Vishal Mourya & Debi Prasad Lenka |
| Punjabi | Baghi Di Dhee | Mukesh Gautam |
| Assamese | Emuthi Puthi | Kulanandini Mahanta |
| Tiwa | Sikaisal | Dr. Bobby Sarma Baruah |
Understand the complete National Film Awards jury selection process.
Why Did Aattam Win Best Feature Film Over Brahmastra?
Aattam won Best Feature Film over Brahmastra because the National Film Awards jury prioritized the complex narrative, social relevance, and artistic merit of the Malayalam drama over the massive visual spectacle of the Hindi blockbuster.
Brahmastra Part 1: Shiva was the biggest Indian VFX spectacle of 2022. It had a budget exceeding Rs 450 crore. It achieved massive box office success. However, the jury selected Aattam for the top honor.
Aattam is a small, dialogue-driven film. It takes place almost entirely in a single room. It focuses on 13 men in a theatre troupe debating how to handle a sexual assault allegation against one of their own.
The jury’s mandate is to reward cinematic excellence, not box office collections. The jury chose Aattam for its sharp script and its powerful exploration of male hypocrisy. Brahmastra received the Best Film in AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comics) award instead.
Kantara’s Double Win: Best Actor and Best Popular Film
Kantara achieved a historic double win as the only film at the 70th National Film Awards to secure both the Best Actor prize for Rishab Shetty and the Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment award.
This double win is significant for Kannada cinema. Kantara started as a regional release. It grew into a pan-India phenomenon through word of mouth. The film connected deeply with audiences through its authentic portrayal of the Bhoota Kola tradition.
Rishab Shetty directed the film and played the lead role of Shiva. His performance in the intense climax sequence earned him the Rajat Kamal for Best Actor. The film’s massive box office success and cultural impact earned it the Swarna Kamal for Best Popular Film.
The jury rewarded the film for proving that culturally rooted, localized stories can achieve massive commercial popularity without compromising their artistic integrity.
Explore the complete history of the Best Kannada Film National Award.
70th National Film Awards Non-Feature Film Winners
The 70th National Film Awards non-feature section recognized Ayena as Best Non-Feature Film, Murmurs of the Jungle as Best Documentary, and honored excellence in short films and animation.
The Non-Feature Film section covers documentaries, short fiction films, animation, and educational films. These categories receive distinct Swarna Kamal and Rajat Kamal awards.
| Category | Winner | Language |
|---|---|---|
| Best Non-Feature Film | Ayena | Hindi/Urdu |
| Best Documentary | Murmurs of the Jungle | Marathi |
| Best Short Film | Xunyota | Assamese |
| Best Animation Film | A Coconut Tree | English |
| Best Biographical Film | Aanakhi Ek Mohenjo Daro | Marathi |
| Best Arts / Culture Film | Ranga Vibhoga & Varsa | Kannada / Marathi |
| Best Non-Feature Film on Social Values | On the Brink (Season 2) | English |
| Best Direction (Non-Feature) | Miriam Chandy Menacherry (From the Shadows) | English/Hindi/Bengali |
| Best Cinematography (Non-Feature) | Siddharth Diwan (Mono No Aware) | Hindi/English |
| Best Script (Non-Feature) | Kausik Sircar (Mono No Aware) | Hindi/English |
| Best Narration / Voice Over | Suman Shinde (Murmurs of the Jungle) | Marathi |
Read the complete National Film Awards non-feature film guide for a detailed history of these categories.
Best Writing on Cinema at the 70th National Film Awards
The Best Writing on Cinema section at the 70th National Film Awards honored Kishore Kumar: The Ultimate Biography as Best Book on Cinema and recognized Deepak Dua as Best Film Critic.
Anirudha Bhattacharjee and Parthiv Dhar authored the winning book. The book provides an exhaustive look into the life of the legendary playback singer. The authors received the Swarna Kamal and Rs 1,00,000 in prize money.
Deepak Dua won the Swarna Kamal for Best Film Critic. The jury praised his consistent, insightful analysis of Hindi cinema throughout the 2022 calendar year.
This result contrasts sharply with the subsequent 71st National Film Awards. In the 71st edition, the jury found no book worthy of the prize and withheld the Best Book on Cinema award entirely.
Explore the complete archive of National Film Awards writing on cinema winners.
Frequently Asked Questions About the 70th National Film Awards
Which film won Best Feature Film at the 70th National Film Awards?
Aattam won Best Feature Film at the 70th National Film Awards. Director Anand Ekarshi received the Swarna Kamal for his critically acclaimed Malayalam drama about a theatre group confronting a sexual assault allegation.
Who won Best Actor at the 70th National Film Awards?
Rishab Shetty won Best Actor at the 70th National Film Awards. He received the Rajat Kamal for his powerful performance as Shiva in the Kannada blockbuster Kantara.
Who received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award at the 70th National Film Awards?
Mithun Chakraborty received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award at the 70th National Film Awards. The government honored the veteran actor with India’s highest cinema recognition for his massive contribution to the film industry over 48 years.
Why did two actresses jointly win Best Actress at the 70th NFA?
Nithya Menen and Manasi Parekh jointly won Best Actress because the jury evaluated their performances in Thiruchitrambalam and Kutch Express as equally outstanding. The jury tied the score, awarding both actresses the Rajat Kamal.
When was the 70th National Film Awards ceremony held?
The 70th National Film Awards ceremony was held on October 8, 2024. President Droupadi Murmu presented the Swarna Kamal and Rajat Kamal trophies to the winners at a formal government event at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi.
Discover More National Film Awards History
Explore the complete databases and detailed guides covering every aspect of India’s highest film honors:
- Browse the all National Film Award winners from 1954 to 2026 master list
- Explore the 71st National Film Awards complete winners
- Anticipate the 72nd National Film Awards
- Read the complete guide to National Film Awards
- Explore all National Film Award categories explained
- Read the complete Best Tamil Film National Award history
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