National Awards for Vidya Balan, Onir's 'I AM'

New Delhi: Actress Vidya Balan won her first National Award for her stellar performance in the biopic of southern sex symbol Silk Smitha in 'The Dirty Picture' and director Onir anthology film 'I AM' compiling four stories on identity picked up two awards as the country's most prestigious film jury kept the focus on regional films at the 59th National Film Awards announced on Wednesday.

Byari, the first film in the Beary language spoken in coastal Kannada, and Marathi film Deool shared the award for Best Feature Film. Byari is about how girls in the small Muslim Beary community are mistreated in the name of marriage and divorce. Through its female protagonist director Suveeran conveys the trauma of a woman who has to deal with unjust religious strictures.

Acclaimed actor Girish Kulkarni also won the Best Actor award for political drama Deool, which has featured in the major film festivals around the world. Deool is a satirical and penetrative account of the politics involved in the commercialization of religion in India. Kulkarni's portrayal as a good-hearted simpleton who sets tumultuous events in motion won over the jury who described his performance as ingenious.

The winners were announced by chairpersons of the jury. The awards will be given to the winners in a ceremony on May 3. For feature films the names of the award winners were declared by actress Rohini Hattangady, who was the chairperson of the Feature Films Jury (Central Panel).

Ramesh Sharma, the chairperson of the Non-Feature films jury and Vijaya Mulay, who chaired the jury on the Best Writing on Cinema announced the names of other award winners.

Traditionally, the National Awards keep the focus on regional films and the presence of Bollywood is limited to only a few select categories. This year 'I Am' won in the Best Hindi Film and Best Lyrics (Amitabh Bhattacharya) category. Director Anubhav Sinha's RA.One won the award for Best Special Effects. Gurvinder Singh won Best Director for 'Anhe Ghorey Da Daan' (Alms of the blind horse), a low-budget Punjabi film that has won international laurels.

Appu Kutty won the Best Supporting Actor for the Tamil film 'Azhagar Samiyin Kuthirai while Leishangthem Tonthoingambi Devi won the Best Supporting Actress award for Manipuri film Phijigee Mani. The Special Jury Award went to singer/director Anjan Dutta whose film Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbona won the Best Bengali film.

'Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbona' that stars Dutta, Amyt Datta, Lew Hilt and Nondon Bagchi, is the story of a Bangla-band and the making of a rockstar.

Stanley ka Dabba's Partho Gupte, the son of director Amol Gupte, and the cast of the film Chillar Party won the Best Child Artist award while the Best Children's Film went to Chillar Party. Another Bollywood win was the Best costume award for Neeta Lulla for the film ‘Bal Gandharva’ (Marathi) and Niharika Khan for ‘The Dirty Picture’ (Hindi). The Best Female Playback Singer went to Roopa Ganguly for Bengali film Abosheshey and the Best Male Playback Singer to Anand Bhate for Marathi film Bal Gandharva.

The Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment went to Tamil film Azhagarsamiyin Kuthirai. Last year Salman Khan's cop romp Dabangg had won in this category.

Director Zoya Akhtar's 'Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara' won the Best Audiography and Best Choreography awards. Neel Dutt won the Best Music Direction award for Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbona while Mayookh Bhaumik won Best Background Score for Bengali film Laptop.

The National Film Awards, which were started as an annual incentive by the Government of India , for the making of artistic, competent and meaningful films have come a long way, to cover the entire national spectrum of Indian Cinema, to judge merit by the highest possible yardstick and to become the most coveted and prestigious award in the country.

Here is a list of the winners:

Best feature film: Shared by Deool (Marathi) and Byari(Kannada)

Best Actor: Girish Kulkarni for ‘Deool’

Best Actress: Vidya Balan for 'The Dirty Picture'

Best film critic: Manoj P Pujari

Special Jury Award: Anjan Dutta

Best Book Award: Anirudha Bhattacharjee and Balaji Vittal for the title

'R.D. Burman The Man, The Music.'

Best Music Direction: Neel Dutt for Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbona

Best Background Score: Mayookh Bhaumik for Bengali film Laptop

Best Lyrics: Amitabh Bhattacharya for 'I AM'

Best Female Playback Singer: Rupa Ganguly

Best Male Playback Singer: Anand Bhate for 'Bal Gandharva'

Best Costume: Neeta Lulla for ‘Bal Gandharva’ (Marathi) and Niharika

Khan for 'The Dirty Picture' (Hindi)

Best Choreography: Bosco and Ceaser for 'Zindagi Naa Milegi Doobara'

Best Special Effects: 'RA.One'

Best Editing: Praveen KL for 'Aaranya Kaandam'

Best Marathi Film: 'Shala'

Best Hindi Film: 'I AM' directed by Onir

Best Bengali Film: 'Ranjana Ami Aar Ashbo Na' directed by Anjan Dutta

Best Dogri Film: Dille Ch Vasya Koi

Best Kannada Film: Kurmavatara

Best Manipuri film: Phijigee Mani

Best Punjabi Film: Anhe Ghorey Da Daan

Best Tamil Film: Vaagai Sooda Va

Best Non Feature Film: And We Play On

Best Debut Film of a Director: The Silent Poet (Manipuri)

Best film on Social Issues: Mindscapes...of Love and Longing shared with Inshallah, Football (Kashmiri, Urdu and English)

Best Film On Family Values: Red Building Where the Sun Sets (English)

Best Screenplay: Vikas Behl and Nitish Tiwari for 'Chillar Party'

Best Adapted screenplay writer: Avinash Deshpande

Best Dialogue: Girish Kulkarni

Best Child Artist: Partho Gupte for 'Stanley ka Dabba' and the Chillar

Party Group

Best Children's Film: Chillar Party

Indira Gandhi award for debut film director: Thiagarajan Kumararaja for 'Aaranya Kaandam'

Special Mention: Director Shari for 'Adi Madhyantam' (Malayalam Film) and Mallika for 'Byari' (Kannada Film)

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