Bandreddi Sukumar received the National Film Award for Best Original Screenplay for Pushpa: The Rule at the 72nd National Film Awards. 

Congratulating Sukumar, Allu Arjun took to X and shared a heartfelt message. He wrote, "Heartfelt congratulations to my director @aryasukku garu! Been awaiting this moment. This award means as much to me as mine. In the end, both of us got National Awards for #PUSHPA. Grateful."

Heartfelt congratulations to my director @aryasukku garu! Been awaiting this moment. This award means as much to me as mine. In the end, both of us got National Awards for #PUSHPA. Grateful. 🖤 pic.twitter.com/atAbQlM8Zf

— Allu Arjun (@alluarjun) September 22, 2026

In a social media post, Kartik Aaryan poured out his heart, affectionately reflecting on how a "mumma’s boy from Gwalior who dared to dream of becoming an actor from an environment jahan log aise sapno par haskar aage badh jaate hai."

President Droupadi Murmu had a message for popular film stars at the 72nd National Film Awards on Tuesday: be careful about what you endorse. 

Speaking at the awards ceremony in Ekta Nagar, Gujarat, she said celebrities have a big influence on children and young people and should not use that influence to promote products that could be harmful to their health. Read the full story here.

After attending the 72nd National Film Awards, Yami Gautam told PTI, "I am still trying to soak in this moment. It's a great matter of pride and honour for any film artist who has worked all their life. There is still a lot left for me to learn in my journey, but receiving such a prestigious honour in itself, and at such a historic place, is truly special."

VIDEO | Ekta Nagar, Gujarat: After attending the 72nd National Film Awards, actress Yami Gautam says, "I am still trying to soak in this moment. It's a great matter of pride and honour for any film artist who has worked all their life. There is still a lot left for me to learn in… pic.twitter.com/Uwng85iJah

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 22, 2026

Manoj Muntashir won the National Film Award for Best Lyrics for the song Jaane Do from the biographical sports drama film Maidaan.

After receiving the honour, he took to X and wrote, "An unassuming boy from Amethi, after 26 years of tireless hard work, has been honored today for the second time with the highest accolade in Indian cinema. If I can do this, anyone can. My young friends, just keep at it, stay steadfast, and keep earning the blessings of your parents. Nothing is impossible!"

अमेठी का एक गुमनाम सा लड़का, 26 साल की अथक मेहनत के बाद, आज दूसरी बार भारतीय सिनेमा के सर्वोच्च सम्मान से सम्मानित हुआ.
अगर मैं ये कर सकता हूँ, तो कोई भी कर सकता है. मेरे युवा साथियों, बस लगे रहो, डटे रहो, और अपने माता-पिता का आशीर्वाद कमाते रहो. असंभव कुछ भी नहीं है!#JaaneDo… pic.twitter.com/q784Sdfit2

— Manoj Muntashir Shukla (@manojmuntashir) September 22, 2026

Mammootty's production house took to X and wrote, "A moment that will stay with us forever. Mammukka receiving the National Film Award for the fourth time is more than an honour, it is a celebration of a remarkable journey, an enduring passion for cinema, and a legacy that continues to inspire. Four National Awards. Countless unforgettable moments. One truly extraordinary journey. Today, we celebrate you, Mammukka."

A moment that will stay with us forever. ❤️
Mammukka receiving the National Film Award for the fourth time is more than an honour, it is a celebration of a remarkable journey, an enduring passion for cinema, and a legacy that continues to inspire.
Four National Awards.… pic.twitter.com/gBJwKDNRHK

— MammoottyKampany (@MKampanyOffl) September 22, 2026

Actor Kartik Aaryan received his first National Award for the 2024 film Chandu Champion from President Droupadi Murmu at a ceremony held today in Kevadia, Gujarat.

He took to his Instagram story to share a candid picture with his parents, captioning it, “With my world for the biggest moment of my life.” Read the full story here.

GV Prakash took to X and wrote, "#amaran my third blessing, thank u all #nationalfilmawards."

#amaran my third blessing ❤️ thank u all #nationalfilmawards pic.twitter.com/Ni824Z4m8e

— G.V.Prakash Kumar (@gvprakash) September 22, 2026

The 72nd National Film Awards ceremony concluded with winners, dignitaries and members of the film fraternity coming together to celebrate excellence in Indian cinema.

President Droupadi Murmu congratulated Mammootty, Yami Gautam, Kartik Aaryan and Randeep Hooda on receiving their honours at the 72nd National Film Awards.

After receiving Dadasaheb Phalke Award at the 72nd National Film Awards, veteran actor Anant Nag said, "The majesty of this function, I have not attended many, or perhaps any, such gatherings. But I am very happy to be here with all of you today. As an actor, we have seen and I have performed. You have seen some of the snippets. I grew up in an ashram and a mutt during my childhood, up to the age of 12. Thereafter, I was sent to Mumbai, where I got a chance to act in a play about Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the saint-poet of Bengal. That is how my career started."

VIDEO | Ekta Nagar, Kevadia: After receiving Dadasaheb Phalke Award at the 72nd National Film Awards, veteran actor Anant Nag says, “The majesty of this function, I have not attended many, or perhaps any, such gatherings. But I am very happy to be here with all of you today. As… pic.twitter.com/DOVwyzrTXx

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 22, 2026

Veteran actor Anant Nag delivers a heartfelt speech after being honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award.

Sanjay Mishra receives the National Film Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Bhakshak at the 72nd National Film Awards.

Veteran actor Anant Nag was conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India's highest award in the field of cinema.

Randeep Hooda receives the National Film Award for Best Debut Film of a Director for Swatantrya Veer Savarkar at the 72nd National Film Awards.

Aditya Dhar receives the National Film Award for Article 370, which won the Best Feature Film award at the 72nd National Film Awards.

Malayalam superstar Mammootty received the Best Actor award for his performance as Kodumon Potti in the psychological horror film Bramayugam.

Actor Kartik Aaryan received his first National Award for the film Chandu Champion from President Droupadi Murmu held at Kevadia in Gujarat today. 

Actor Yami Gautam received her first National Award for the 2024 film Article 370 from President Droupadi Murmu. 

Yami was accompanied by husband Aditya Dhar, who is also a co-producer on the film Article 370.

GV Prakash Kumar receives the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for Amaran.

Bandreddi Sukumar receives the National Film Award for Best Original Screenplay for Pushpa: The Rule Part 2 (Telugu) at the 72nd National Film Awards.

Vijay Ganguly receives the National Film Award for Best Choreography for Aaj Ki Raat from Stree 2.

Dhanush receives the National Film Award for Raayan in the Best Tamil Film category.

"Cinema is not just a medium of entertainment; it is also a mirror to society," said Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel at the ceremony.

Bhushan Kumar receives the National Film Award for Srikanth in the Best Hindi Film category.

Dhanush receives National Film Award in the Special Mention category for Captain Miller.

Actor Rupali Ganguly spotted at the 72nd National Film Awards ceremony.

At the 72nd National Film Awards, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw revealed the reason behind choosing Kevadia (Ekta Nagar) as the venue for this year's ceremony. The minister said the government wants to promote "various tourist destinations" across the country.

"So that you can experience the heritage and history of this beautiful place. Next time we will go to other tourist destinations. I give out a call to states and UTs... Tell us what improvements you'll make and then we will hold the next National Film Awards at the selected tourist destination," he said.

The I&B Minister also clapped back at critics who called shifting the venue of the National Film Awards from Delhi to Kevadia this year a "political" decision.

"Look above political interest. Think 'nation first'," he added. 

At the 72nd National Film Awards, Minister of Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw said, "Congratulations to all the winners. It is an honour to receive the National Film Award. Today, Dadasaheb Phalke Award recipient Anant Nag is also here. You have rendered great service to the film industry. He has served the world of cinema for more than five decades."

Aanand L Rai receives National Award for Best Direction (Non-Feature) for Statue of Unity - Ekta ka Prateek.

Mammootty, Dhanush, Kartik Aaryan, Randeep Hooda, Yami Gautam, Aditya Dhar spotted together singing the National song at the ceremony.

Dadasaheb Phalke recipient Anant Nag spotted at the 72nd National Film Awards.

Dadasaheb Phalke Award recipient Anant Nag said he doesn't want to return to acting, citing what he described as deteriorating scripts, poor content, and shifting priorities in Indian cinema. 

In an exclusive interview with NDTV's Deepak Bopanna, the actor clarified that his decision was not related to his health.

"There are no health concerns," Anant Nag, 78, said.

Explaining why he stepped away from acting, Anant Nag said he grew unhappy with the quality of scripts and how films were being made. "I saw that the scripts were deteriorating," he said. Read the full story here.

"It feels great. This is the biggest validation for any artist that you can receive. I think is the highest honour that's presented to you by your country. I don't think I can ever be able to express how I'm feeling right now. I'm still trying to soak in," said Yami Gautam while speaking to DD.

"We are here for Article 370. Hopefully we come next year also," says Aditya Dhar, producer of Article 370, ahead of the 72nd National Film Awards.

Kartik Aaryan was spotted at the 72nd National Film Awards ceremony with Dhanush.

Mammootty is celebrating his fourth National Film Award for Best Actor in Bramayugam. Speaking to DD National on the red carpet of the 72nd National Film Awards, the veteran actor said the recognition was an inspiration to performers and credited the people who have supported him throughout his journey.

“It’s an inspiration to every performer to get recognised by the nation and luckily I’m very fortunate to have my fourth National Award for the Best Actor. It’s been a long journey with a lot of people behind me or supporting me, my directors, my writers, my co-actors and my producer and the people who were appreciating me. I’m very happy that I could entertain them for such a long time and hope that I can do it more, more and more times. I can only assure you that I’ll be working very hard to be there,” Mammootty said.

During the interaction, the DD National host also reflected on Mammootty’s long career and the many performances through which he has thrilled audiences and made them emotional. Asked about how he approaches a role and transforms himself into a character, particularly in films such as Bramayugam, the actor explained that he focuses on the script before the character.

“I choose the script, then the role. This was not actually the character structure they have brought me and the figure they have shown me is not this. This is something that was something else which I sat with my makeup man and costumes for half an hour, I could become that and should thank my director for that, my makeup man, my costumer, my cameraman. Of course, this is a black-and-white film, maybe my first film after long, long ago. I have done a cameo in a black-and-white film. That’s it,” he said.

Speaking to DD, choreographer Vijay Ganguly said receiving his first National Film Award for Stree's Aaj Ki Raat is a "surreal" feeling.

"My father got the National Film Award 50 years ago. It is a great feeling. My mother accompanied my father then, she has accompanied me today," said Vijay Ganguly, who has also choreographed songs for Dhurandhar.

Actors Kartik Aaryan and Yami Gautam will receive their very first National Film Award for Chandu Champion and Article 370, respectively.

After the venue of the 72nd National Film Awards was shifted from Delhi to Ekta Nagar (Kevadia) stirred a political row. Actor and former BJP MP Paresh Rawal defended the choice. 

"Gujarat kya Bangladesh mein hai, Pakistan mein hai? Gujarat toh hamare desh ka hi hissa hai. Gujarat mein zaroor hona chahiye (Is Gujarat in Pakistan? Is it in Bangladesh? Gujarat is very much a part of our country)," Paresh Rawal had said.

Veteran actor Anant Nag has been named the recipient of the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2024 for his contribution to Indian cinema. 

The countdown to the 72nd National Film Awards ceremony has begun, with stars, filmmakers and other members of the Indian film industry arriving in Gujarat ahead of the grand event on Tuesday. 

Among those spotted at the airport were music director GV Prakash, Rajya Sabha MP and filmmaker-screenwriter V Vijayendra Prasad, actor Sreelekha Mukherji and filmmaker Jayarajan Nair.

(Inputs from PTI)

The awards ceremony will begin at 4 pm. The event will be livestreamed on Press Information Bureau (PIB)'s YouTube channel. 

Watch LIVE 📡
🔹72nd National Film Awards
📍Kevadia, Gujarat
🕔4 PMhttps://t.co/efQNLDxUIR#NationalFilmAwards #72ndNationalFilmAwards #IndiaCelebratesCinema #FilmsThatUnite #NFA #UnityInDiversity pic.twitter.com/M1FsFi1jpj

— PIB India (@PIB_India) September 22, 2026

Kartik Aaryan has arrived in Gujarat ahead of the 72nd National Film Awards, where he is set to receive his first National Film Award for his performance in Chandu Champion. 

Before the ceremony, the actor visited the Statue of Unity and gave fans a glimpse of his trip by sharing pictures on Instagram.

The National Film Awards ceremony is taking place in Kevadia, Gujarat, with President Droupadi Murmu presenting the honours.

Kevadia, which has been renamed Ekta Nagar, is home to the world's tallest statue - that of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The Statue of Unity stands at 597 feet and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2018.

The first National Awards in 1954 were held in Delhi's Vigyan Bhawan. Since then most of the award ceremonies took place over there. Read the full story here.