President of India Droupadi Murmu on Friday gave away National Film Awards for the year 2020 under various categories at the 68th edition of the ceremony in New Delhi.
While veteran actress Asha Parekh received the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award, Best Non-Feature Film was conferred on “The Testimony of Ana”, and the Best Feature Film on “Soorarai Pottru”.
Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting (I&B) Anurag Singh Thakur, Union Minister of State for I&B Dr L Murugan, Ministry of I&B Secretary Apurva Chandra, Chairpersons of Jury and other dignitaries were present at the event.
Suriya and Ajay Devgn jointly received the Best Actor Award, while Best Actress award was bestowed on Aparrna Balamurali.
Sachidanandan KR was given the Best Director award for Malayalam movie AK Ayyappanum Koshiyum.
Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior received the Award for Best Popular Film. Speaking on the occasion, the President congratulated Dadasaheb Phalke Awadree Asha Parekh for her special contribution to the world of cinema and said that this award to her is a recognition of women empowerment.
Films have the widest impact among all the art forms, they are also a medium for an artistic expression of our value system, Murmu said, adding cinema is an effective tool for nation building as well.
The President said that as the nation celebrates Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, feature and non-feature films related to the life stories of freedom fighters, known and unknown, will be welcomed by Indian audiences. “The audience desires production of such films which bolster unity in the society, accelerate the pace of development of the nation and strengthen the efforts of environmental protection,” she said.
Highlighting the recognition enjoyed by Indian music abroad, the President said that it has been a great medium for spreading India’s soft-power globally. She further remarked that In July this year, a meeting of Foreign Ministers of the member countries of Shanghai Cooperation Organization was held in Uzbekistan where a popular song from a 1960s Hindi film was performed by a foreign band at the closing ceremony.
Speaking on the occasion Anurag Thakur said he strongly believed that cinema is poetry in pictures mirroring the magic, marvel and madness of all that makes us feel alive and human. “Cinema has captured and carved the conscience, community and culture of our country. Debutants, professionals and legends from the Indian Film Industry have tickled and touched our hearts and minds for over a century,” he added.
Speaking on the role played by OTT platforms during the COVID19 pandemic, the Minister said that today cinema has crossed the boundaries of theatre and reached the comforts of our homes and mobile phones with the advent of OTT. Thakur credited the film stars of India for their contribution during the pandemic and said that in the midst of the grim reality of Covid and fragile global macroeconomic conditions, the manoranjan and messaging provided by you was our only beacon of hope.
Thakur said that yet again the awards have brought out the regional strength of the country and reminded us how Indian cinema is brimming and blossoming with brilliance and talent. Films like Kachichinithu in language Karbi, Testimony of Ana in Dangi, and Semkhor in Dimasa are extraordinary displays of our linguistic wealth, he further added.
Thakur congratulated four child actors for bagging the Best Child Artist Award and also made a special mention of Divyesh Indulkar, a divyang boy, who was one of the awardees. The Minister expressing his delight that the Best Female Playback Singer Awardee, Nanjiyammawas a folk singer, hails from a small tribal community in Kerala with no professional film background. “This shows the power of our storytelling and talent,” he said.
