CHENNAI: The Government of India on Thursday announced the winners of the 71st National Film Awards for 2023, honouring outstanding films and artists from across the country’s cinema landscape.
Tamil film Parking emerged as a major winner, bagging three awards — Best Tamil Film, Best Screenplay (Director Ramkumar Balakrishnan) and Best Supporting Actor for M.S. Bhaskar’s heart-touching performance. Actor and Rajya Sabha MP Kamal Haasan lauded the team, congratulating producers Sinish Sreedharan of Soldiers Factory and Sudhan Sundaram of Fashion Studios, as well as Ramkumar Balakrishnan for his screenplay and direction. “Hearty appreciation and love to Thambi M.S. Bhaskar for winning the Best Supporting Actor Award,” he said.
Haasan also praised GV Prakash Kumar for winning Best Music Director (Lyrics) for Vaathi, veteran actress Urvashi for clinching Best Supporting Actress for the Malayalam film Ullozhukku, and Saravanamuthu Soundarapandi and Meenakshi Soman for winning Best Cinematography in the non-feature category for the documentary Little Wings.
The awards also marked a historic moment for Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, who won his first-ever National Award in his 35-year career. He was named Best Actor for his role in Atlee’s Jawan. Kamal Haasan took to social media to congratulate Khan, calling the honour “long overdue” and praising his “stellar impact on world cinema.”
Haasan also lauded Vikrant Massey, who won for his performance in 12th Fail, and Rani Mukherjee, who earned recognition for a role he described as “both fierce and fragile.” In his post, he wrote: “12th Fail was a masterpiece that moved me deeply. It dignified struggle and inspired millions. Congratulations, Vidhu Vinod Chopra and @VikrantMassey on this well-deserved honour. Applauding Rani Mukherjee for a portrayal richly deserving of this national recognition.”