The winners of the 72nd National Film Awards were unveiled by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting at a press conference in New Delhi on July 18, 2026. The honours recognise the best Indian films certified by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) in 2024, with the recipients selected by a distinguished 11-member jury panel.
This year, Yami Gautam, Kartik Aaryan, and Mammootty emerged among the biggest winners, while Article 370 also secured multiple honours. Here’s the complete list of winners.
72nd National Film Awards Winners for Feature Films
Special mentions: Suren G (II Meiyazhagan), Dhanush (Captain Miller)
Best Tulu Film: IMBU
Best Garhwali Film: Dholi
Best Telugu Film: Committee Kurrollu
Best Tamil Film: Raayan
Best Manipuri Film: Sunita
Best Odia Film: Lahari
Best Marathi Film: Mukkham Post Bombilwadi
Best Malayalam Film: Feminichi Fathima
Best Kannada Film: Mithya
Best Hindi Film: Srikanth
Best Gujarati Film: Maaran
Best Bengali Film: Chalchithra Ekhon
Best Assamese Film: Juiphool
Best Konkani Film: Mog Asum
Best Action Direction: Ani Arasu (Maharaja)
Best Choreography: Vijay Ganguly (Stree 2)
Best Lyrics: Manoj Muntashir (Jaane Do – Maidaan)
Best Music Direction: GV Prakash Kumar (Amaran), Shaswat Sachdev (Article 370)
Best Makeup: P Ravi Kumar (Committee Kurrolu)
Best Costume Design: Deepali Noor, Sheetal Sharma (Pushpa 2)
Best Production Design: Nitin Zihan Choudhary (Kalki 2898 AD)
Best Editing: R Kalaivannan (Amaran)
Best Sound Design: Manas Choudhury (Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3)
Best Dialogues: Venky Atluri (Lucky Baskhar)
Best Screenplay: Yogesh Deshpande (Swargandharva Sudhir Phadke), Bandireddi Sukumar (Pushpa 2)
Best Cinematography: Shehnad Jalal (Bramayugam)
Best Playback Singer: Vaikom Vijayalakshmi (ARM – Angu Vaana Konilu), Abhay Jodhpurkar (Gharat Ganpati – Navsachi Gauri Mazi)
Best Child Artist: Riddhiman Banerjee, Topomoy Deb, Gitashree Chakraborty (Onko Ki Kothin), Arundev Pothula (35 – Chinna Katha Kaadu), Athish S Shetty (Mithya)
Best Actor in Supporting Role: Ropashree Varkady (Mithya), Sachana Namidass (Maharaja), Sanjay Mishra (Bakshak)
Best Actor in Leading Role: Yami Gautam (Article 370), Kartik Aaryan (Chandu Champion), Mammootty (Bramayugam)
Best Direction: Rajkumar Periasamy (Amaran)
Best Children’s Film: 35 – Chinna Katha Kaadu
Best Film Promoting National, Social, Environmental Values: Captain Miller
Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment: Kalki 2898 AD
Best Debut Film: Swatantrya Veer Savarkar
Best Film: Article 370
Non-feature films
Special mentions: Chola Dora Aur Sui, Badra-Kali Natakam
Best Script: Faraz Ali
Best Voiceover: Soundarya Jayachandran (Little Frogs)
Best Music Direction: Shivpal Singh Kang (On the Trail of 41)
Best Editing: Manvir Jasrotia
Best Sound Design: Hari Hara Sudhan (Blue)
Best Cinematography: Edmond Ranson (Life in Loom)
Best Direction: Aanand L Rai (Statue of Unity)
Best Short Film: Hamsafar
Best Animation Film: Touched as Water
Best Social/Environmental Film: Piplantri
Best Documentary Film: Ram-Nami
Best Art/Culture Film: Main Nida
Best Biographical/Historical Reconstruction Film: Kakori
Best Debut Film: Angen
Best Non-Fiction Film: Bhangar
Also Read: 72nd National Film Awards 2026 LIVE: Kartik Aaryan, Mammootty share Best Actor in a Leading Role
