The 72nd National Film Awards were held at Ekta Nagar in Gujarat’s Kevadia, marking the first time the ceremony was hosted outside Delhi. Mammootty and Kartik Aaryan shared the Best Actor award for Bramayugam and Chandu Champion, while Yami Gautam won Best Actress for Article 370, which also took home Best Feature Film. Veteran actor Anant Nag was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for his contribution to Indian cinema. Randeep Hooda won Best Debut Film of a Director for Swatantrya Veer Savarkar, while Dhanush received a Special Mention for Captain Miller and won Best Director for Raayan.
Other notable winners included Sukumar for Best Original Screenplay for Pushpa: The Rule, Venky Atluri for Best Dialogue for Lucky Baskhar, Shashwat Sachdev for Original Score, Vaikom Vijayalakshmi for Best Female Playback Singer for ARM, and Manoj Muntashir for Best Lyrics for Maidaan. The ceremony was attended by several leading film personalities, with the government saying the awards will now be taken to major tourist destinations across India to promote both cinema and tourism.