INDIA: The winners of the 68th National Film Awards were announced in New Delhi. The Best Actor award for the year is to be shared by Suriya and Ajay Devgn for their work in ‘Soorarai Pottru’ and ‘Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior’ respectively. The movies are critically acclaimed globally.
This is Suriya’s first National Award and Ajay Devgn’s third. Devgn has won Best Actor for his 1998 film ‘Zakhm’ and 2002’s ‘The Legend Of Bhagat Singh’.
Tanhaji is a movie based upon the life of a real hero who was a Maratha warrior, who gave his life for his kingdom selflessly. On the other hand, Suriya’s movie is based on the events in the life of Simplifly Deccan founder G Gopinath.
Malayalam thriller Ayyappanum Koshiyum won two big awards – K R Sachidanandan, known professionally as Sachy, won Best Director posthumously and Biju Menon won Best Supporting Actor. Sachy died of cardiac arrest in 2020 at the age of 47.
Toolsidas Junior was awarded Best Hindi Film with a special jury mention for child actor Varun Buddhadev.
After receiving the prestigious award with Surya, Ajay said, “I’m elated to win the Best Actor Award for Tanhaji—The Unsung Warrior at the 68th National Awards along with Suriya who won for Soorarai Pottru. I thank everyone, most of my creative team, the audience, and my fans. I also express my gratitude to my parents & the Almighty for their blessings. Congratulations to all the other winners.”
Adding on to the statement Devgn expressed his gratitude and thankfulness to his entire team by saying, “As the producer of Tanhaji—The Unsung Warrior, it gives me immense joy to receive an honour at the 68th National Film Awards for the Best film that has provided wholesome entertainment. Tanhaji was exactly that. It is a good story of friendship, loyalty, family values and sacrifice. It has strong national sentiments, super VFX and a holistic approach to entertainment.”
“I must share the honour with my director Om Raut, my co-producers, T-Series and my co-actors. Most of all, I thank my creative team who have contributed handsomely to making this a blockbuster and now a National Award winner.”
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