Chennai reverberated with pride as veteran Tamil actor M. S. Bhaskar was announced as a recipient of the prestigious National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 71st edition of the awards.
His nuanced and compelling performance in the critically acclaimed Tamil film ‘Parking’ (2023) earned him this well-deserved recognition, a testament to his long and dedicated career in Indian cinema.
Bhaskar shares this esteemed award with the talented Malayalam actor Vijayaraghavan, who was lauded for his role in ‘Pookkaalam’ , highlighting the diverse talent celebrated by the National Awards across regional cinema.
‘Parking’ , directed by Ramkumar Balakrishnan, emerged as a significant winner at the ceremony.
Beyond Bhaskar’s accolade, the film also secured the coveted National Award for Best Tamil Film.
‘Parking’ also bagged the award for Best Screenplay (Original).
Meanwhile, the Telugu film industry took home seven honors. The film ‘Hanu-Man’ was a standout, winning the “Best Film” in the AVGC (animation, visual effects, gaming, and comics) category and “Best Action Direction” for choreographer Nandu Prudhvi.
Another notable Telugu film, ‘Baby’ , earned “Best Male Playback Singer” for PVNS Rohit and “Best Screenplay (Original)” for Sai Rajesh Neelam.
Other key wins for Telugu cinema included “Best Lyrics” for Kasarla Shyam from ‘Balagam’ and “Best Telugu Film” for ‘Bhagavanth Kesari’ , starring Nandamuri Balakrishna.
The awards also saw major wins for Hindi cinema, with Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s ’12th Fail’ clinching the “Best Feature Film” award. The “Best Actor” award was a tie, shared by Shah Rukh Khan for his performance in ‘Jawan’ and Vikrant Massey for ’12th Fail’ . Meanwhile, Rani Mukerji was honored with the “Best Actress” award for her role in ‘Mrs Chatterjee vs Norway’ .