67th National Film Awards were presented by Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu

Indian cinema’s iconic actor Rajinikanth was conferred with the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest award given to recognize the contributions of film personalities towards the development of Indian cinema and for distinguished contributions to the medium, its growth, and promotion. Manoj Bajpayee and Dhanush shared the award for Best Actor, for their performance in films ‘Bhonsle (Hindi), and ‘Asuran (Tamil)’ respectively. Kangana Ranaut received the award for Best Actress for her performance in films ‘Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi’ and ‘Panga’. Malayalam film ‘Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea’ won the Best Feature Film award and the director Priyadarshan and producer Antony Perumbavoor received the awards. Late Sushant Singh Rajput’s last film ‘Chhichhore’ too was honoured with the Best Hindi Film Award.

South cinema, especially Malayalam and Tamil bagged top honours at the 67th National Film Awards and Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu acknowledged the same while felicitating the award winners. From Rajinikanth receiving a standing ovation to Malayalam cinema bagging top honours, it was a proud moment for South cinema.