72nd National Film Awards: Mammootty, Kartik Aaryan and Yami Gautam Lead Honours in Gujarat

Shared acting honours and a ceremony in Gujarat

Mammootty and Kartik Aaryan shared the Best Actor honour, Yami Gautam won Best Actress, and veteran actor Anant Nag received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award at the reported 72nd National Film Awards ceremony in Ekta Nagar, Gujarat. President Droupadi Murmu presented the honours, which recognised films released in 2024.

The ceremony is dated September 22, 2026, following an announcement of the winners on July 18. Article 370 took Best Feature Film as well as Gautam's acting award, while Amaran received recognition for direction, editing and background music. Dhanush was associated with two honours: Best Tamil Film for Raayan, which he directed, and a Special Mention for his performance in Captain Miller.

Photographs and descriptions from the event put families and film crews alongside the winners. Aaryan attended with his parents, while Dhanush appeared with his sons, Yatra and Linga. Gautam and her husband, Article 370 producer Aditya Dhar, were pictured together and greeting Mammootty.

Several details require care, however. Reports differ over the precise categories attached to Dhanush's awards, the dates of Mammootty's earlier wins and whether this was the first ceremony outside New Delhi. No official award notification or ceremony statement accompanies these accounts, so disputed details should not be treated as settled.

Why the venue matters

The event took place in Ekta Nagar, formerly known as Kevadia, near the Statue of Unity in Gujarat. Accounts describe the move as part of a government decision to bring future National Film Awards ceremonies to different parts of India rather than keeping them in the national capital.

Some descriptions call the Gujarat event the first ceremony outside New Delhi. Another gives a specific exception: the 17th National Film Awards ceremony, held in Chennai in 1971. Those accounts cannot both support an unqualified claim that Gujarat was the first venue outside Delhi.

If the Chennai account is correct, the September 2026 ceremony would instead mark a return to a venue outside the capital after 55 years. The distinction matters because the change would be a revival of an earlier practice, rather than an entirely new departure.

The reported sequence separates the year of the films from the year in which the honours were announced and presented:

• 2024: The release year covered by the competitive film awards.
• July 18, 2026: The reported announcement of the 72nd National Film Awards winners.
• September 22, 2026: The reported presentation ceremony in Ekta Nagar, Gujarat.

The accounts describe plans for ceremonies in other parts of the country, but do not identify the next host location or a date for the next presentation.

Mammootty and Aaryan recognised for contrasting roles

Mammootty's honour was for playing Kodumon Potti in Bramayugam, a Malayalam psychological horror film whose imagery is presented in black and white. Aaryan won for Chandu Champion, the Hindi sports drama directed by Kabir Khan about Murlikant Petkar, India's first Paralympic gold medallist in freestyle swimming.

The shared award brought together two very different performances: a role built around the menace of a horror story and a portrayal of an athlete's life. Aaryan undertook physical preparation and intensive training for the part. The award is described as his first National Film Award, while Mammootty's is described as his fourth Best Actor honour.

Reports agree on the films associated with Mammootty's three previous wins: Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha and Mathilukal; Ponthan Mada and Vidheyan; and Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. They disagree on the dates, however. One gives 1990, 1994 and 1999, while another gives 1989, 1990 and 1994. Without an official historical record here, those dates cannot be reconciled confidently.

Bramayugam also received a cinematography honour for Shehnad Jalal. That second award recognises the film's visual construction separately from Mammootty's performance. Although one account describes it as the only Malayalam film to win twice, a complete official list would be needed to establish that distinction.

Article 370 brings Gautam her first award

Yami Gautam received her first National Film Award for playing an intelligence officer in Article 370. The film follows events surrounding the removal of Jammu and Kashmir's special constitutional status. Alongside her Best Actress award, it received Best Feature Film, with producers Jio Studios and B62 Studios named as recipients.

Aditya Dhar collected the film honour as a producer. The distinction between producer and director is relevant here: one account calls Dhar the director, but the more detailed film credits identify Aditya Suhas Jambhale as director. The cast also includes Priyamani, Arun Govil and Kiran Karmarkar.

Gautam, writing after the winners were announced, described the recognition as a personal milestone after years of acting work:

Every journey has a moment that reminds you why you never gave up. Today is that moment for me. Receiving the National Award for Article 370 is an honour I will cherish for the rest of my life.

She also explained why the project carried particular meaning for her:

Article 370 was never just another film for me. It was a story I deeply believed in. The fact that it was our home production makes this recognition even more emotional and personal.

Photographs showed Gautam and Aaryan posing with their awards. Dhar was also pictured with Gautam, both in conversation and meeting Mammootty.

What Dhanush's two honours actually recognise

Dhanush's appearance generated some of the largest discrepancies in the award descriptions. The more detailed lists identify Raayan as Best Tamil Film and his performance in Captain Miller as receiving a Special Mention. Other accounts describe him as winning Best Director for Raayan or Best Actor for Captain Miller.

Those categories are not interchangeable. Best Tamil Film recognises a film within its language category. A Special Mention is a separate form of jury recognition, not the shared Best Actor award attributed to Mammootty and Aaryan. Similarly, recognition for a film directed by Dhanush should not automatically be described as a Best Direction prize.

Raayan, which Dhanush directed and starred in, follows a man drawn into crime and revenge while trying to protect his family. Captain Miller, directed by Arun Matheswaran and set before Indian independence, is also listed as winning Best Feature Film Promoting National, Social and Environmental Values.

The event photographs offered a family moment alongside those distinctions. Dhanush wore a shirt, veshti and sandals, while his sons, Yatra and Linga, wore formal suits. He was also pictured seated beside Aaryan.

Amaran and Maharaja spread recognition across film crafts

Amaran's honours extended beyond its performers. Rajkumar Periasamy received Best Direction, G. V. Prakash Kumar won the music direction award for background music, and R. Kalaivannan received Best Editing. The Tamil film stars Sivakarthikeyan and Sai Pallavi.

The three categories recognise different parts of the same production. Direction concerns the shaping of the film as a whole; editing determines how its scenes and performances are assembled; background music is the score accompanying the action and emotion, distinct from a film's songs.

Maharaja brought awards to both performance and action work. Sachana Namidass, who played the daughter of Vijay Sethupathi's character, shared Best Supporting Actress with Ropashree Varkady for Mithya. Anal Arasu received recognition for the action choreography in Maharaja.

A separate account also lists Suren G. as receiving an award for sound mixing on Meiyazhagan. Sound mixing is the balancing of dialogue, music and effects in the finished soundtrack. That credit does not appear in every winner summary, so it should not be used to infer a complete total for the film.

Accounts of G. V. Prakash Kumar's career total also need caution. One describes Amaran as his third award and names Soorarai Pottru and Vaathi as earlier wins. The current background music honour is repeated across reports, but the earlier total is not supported by an official record here.

Hooda's debut and Mishra's emotional connection

Randeep Hooda received Best Debut Film of a Director for Swatantrya Veer Savarkar, a biographical drama in which he also acted and helped write the screenplay. The film portrays Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and features Ankita Lokhande and Amit Sial.

Hooda, speaking after the award announcement, described the demands of taking on several roles in the production:

Being announced as the winner of the National Award for Best Debut Director for Swatantrya Veer Savarkar is a moment I'm still trying to process. This film asked more of me than anything I've ever done.

Sanjay Mishra received Best Supporting Actor for playing Bhaskar Sinha in Bhakshak. Directed by Pulkit, the film follows journalist Vaishali Singh, played by Bhumi Pednekar, as she investigates allegations of abuse at a girls' shelter home in Bihar. Mishra plays the cameraman supporting her investigation.

For Mishra, learning of the award through the Press Information Bureau carried a connection to his late father, who had worked there. The actor explained:

The most special part is that my father worked at the PIB. He is no longer with us, but I received this news through the very office where he once served. That was a huge moment for me.

The recognition followed more than three decades of Mishra's work in cinema. At the ceremony, Hooda was pictured seated with Gautam and Dhar.

Language awards, popular films and technical winners

Srikanth received Best Hindi Film, with producer Bhushan Kumar and director Tushar Hiranandani collecting the honour. Starring Rajkummar Rao, it tells the story of entrepreneur Srikanth Bolla. Feminichi Fathima and Committee Kurrollu were listed as Best Malayalam Film and Best Telugu Film respectively.

Kalki 2898 AD won Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment, a category separate from Best Feature Film. It also received Best Production Design for Nitin Zihani Choudhary. Production design covers the creation of a film's physical and visual setting, including the environments in which its story unfolds.

Pushpa: The Rule Part 2 received Best Original Screenplay for Bandreddi Sukumar and Best Costume Design, shared by Deepali Noor and Sheetal Sharma. Other reported writing honours went to Yogesh Deshpande for Swargandharva Sudhir Phadke and Venky Atluri for the dialogue of Lucky Baskhar.

Vijay Ganguly received Best Choreography for Aaj Ki Raat from Stree 2. His sister, actor Rupali Ganguly, attended and celebrated his recognition. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 was listed as winning Best Sound Design for Manas Choudhury.

Music descriptions differ between accounts. Shashwat Sachdev is credited with a music award for Article 370, while another account also associates his recognition with Kalki 2898 AD. Vaikom Vijayalakshmi is named as a female playback singing winner without a song or film being specified. Those omissions prevent a precise account of all music categories.

Anant Nag receives the lifetime honour

Anant Nag received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2024, recognising a career spanning more than five decades, particularly in Kannada cinema and across other Indian languages. Unlike the competitive awards for individual films and performances, this honour recognises a person's contribution to Indian cinema over a lifetime.

The award was instituted in 1969, with Devika Rani as its first recipient. Its presentation alongside the film awards places an established career beside achievements from the particular release year being honoured.

The reported results also extend beyond feature films. Bhangaar won Best Non Feature Film, Ram-Nami won Best Documentary, and Statue of Unity - Ekta ka Prateek received Best Direction, with Aanand L Rai named as the recipient.

Together, those results show a wider range of work than the celebrity photographs alone convey. Acting, filmmaking, music, editing, action, design and documentary production all appear in the honours. The exact category wording and unresolved historical details still require an official award list to settle them.

Key Points

• The ceremony is reported to have taken place on September 22, 2026, in Ekta Nagar, Gujarat, with President Droupadi Murmu presenting the awards.
• Mammootty and Kartik Aaryan shared Best Actor for Bramayugam and Chandu Champion.
• Yami Gautam won Best Actress for Article 370, which also received Best Feature Film.
• Raayan was named Best Tamil Film, while Dhanush received a Special Mention for Captain Miller.
• Amaran received honours for direction, editing and background music.
• Anant Nag received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2024.
• Reports differ on some award labels, earlier award dates and the ceremony's history outside Delhi.