The 71st National Film Awards were announced on August 1, 2025, in New Delhi. These awards are given every year to honour the best work in Indian films. This year’s awards were for movies that were certified in 2023. The awards were organised by the National Film Development Corporation of India and the Directorate of Film Festivals.

The award for Best Feature Film went to 12th Fail, directed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. In the Best Actor category, two winners were announced. Shah Rukh Khan won for Jawan, and Vikrant Massey won for 12th Fail. This was the first time Shah Rukh Khan received a National Award.

Rani Mukerji won Best Actress for her role in Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway. Sudipto Sen was named Best Director for The Kerala Story. The award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment went to Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani.

Some movies that focused on social themes were also recognised. Sam Bahadur won the award for Feature Film promoting National, Social, and Environmental Values. The Marathi movie Naal 2 won the award for Best Children’s Film.

In the Animation and Visual Effects category, the Telugu film Hanuman was selected as the Best Film in AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comics).

The award for Best Non-Feature Film was given to Flowering Man. The film God Vulture and Human won Best Documentary. Piyush Thakur was named Best Director in the non-feature category.

There were also other important winners. Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani received another award as Best Popular Film, and the Marathi film Aatmapamphlet, directed by Ashish Bende, won the Best Debut Film of a Director.

This year’s awards showed the variety of films made in different languages and styles. Films from Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, and other regional languages were honoured. The awards celebrated both well-known stars and new talent. They also showed how films can help people think about social and cultural topics in India.