Touted to be one of the most prestigious honors in our country, the 70th National Awards were recently announced at the National Media Center in New Delhi on Friday. For the unknown, the ceremony to honor the winners in their presence will be held at a future date when the best Indian films produced across languages in the calendar year 2022 will be honoured by the President.

An array of feature and non-feature films certified by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) between January 1, 2022, and December 31, 2022, were eligible for contention.

This year’s jury included Chairperson of the Feature Film Jury, Rahul Rawail; Nila Madhab Panda, Chairperson of the Non-Feature Film Jury; and Gangadhar Mudalair, Chairperson of the Best Writing on Cinema Jury.

Here are some noteworthy winners-

Best Feature Film – Aatam (Malayalam)

Best Actor – Rishab Shetty for Kantara

Best Actress – Nithya Menen for Thiruchitrambalam and Manasi Parekh for Kutch Express

Best Director – Sooraj Barjatya for Uunchai

Best Supporting Actress –Neena Gupta for Uunchai

Best Supporting Actor – Pawan Malhotra for Fouja

Best Feature Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment – Kantara

Best Debut – Fouja, Pramod Kumar

Best Tamil Film – Ponniyin Selvan – Part 1

Best Telugu Film – Karthikeya 2

Best Kannada Film – KGF: Chapter 2

Best Marathi Film – Vaalvi

Best Hindi Film – Gulmohar

Best Tiwa Film – Sikaisal

Best Bengali Film – Kaberi Antardhan

Best Assamese Film – Emuthi Puthi

Best Punjabi Film – Baaghi Di Dhee

Best Odia Film – Daman

Best Malayalam Film – Saudi Velakka CC.225/2009

Special Mentions – Manoj Bajpayee in Gulmohar, and Sanjoy Salil Chowdhury for Kadhikan

Best Action Direction – KGF: Chapter 2

Best Choreography – Tiruchitrabalam

Best Lyrics – Fouja

Best Music Director – Pritam (Songs), AR Rahman (Background Score)

Best Makeup – Aparajito

Best Costumes – Kutch Express

Best Production Design – Aparajito

Best Editing – Aattam

Best Sound Design – Ponniyin Selvan – Part 1

Best Screenplay – Aattam

Best Dialogues – Gulmohar

Best Cinematography – Ponniyin Selvan – Part 1

Best Film in AVGC – Brahmastra

Best Non-Feature Film Promoting Social and Environmental Values – Kutch Express

As one knows, the ceremonies were delayed two years owing to the pandemic. The 69th National Film Awards, held in 2023, honoured the best Indian films certified in the calendar year 2021. Rocketry won the Best Feature Film honour, while Allu Arjun won the Best Actor award, and Alia Bhatt and Kriti Sanon shared the Best Actress honour.