The 72nd National Film Awards took place on Tuesday, September 22, in Gujarat, and Malayalam superstar Mammootty received the Best Actor award for his performance as Kodumon Potti in the psychological horror film Bramayugam. The prestigious ceremony was held at Ekta Nagar (Kedavia).
The win marks Mammootty’s fourth National Film Award for Best Actor, putting him on a par with Amitabh Bachchan for the most wins in the category. President Droupadi Murmu presented the award to the veteran actor.
Ahead of the event, speaking to DD National on the red carpet, the veteran actor said the recognition was an inspiration to performers and credited the people who have supported him throughout his journey.
“It’s an inspiration to every performer to get recognised by the nation, and luckily I’m very fortunate to have my fourth National Award for the Best Actor. It’s been a long journey with a lot of people behind me or supporting me: my directors, my writers, my co-actors, my producer, and the people who were appreciating me. I’m very happy that I could entertain them for such a long time and hope that I can do it more, more, and more times. I can only assure you that I’ll be working very hard to be there,” Mammootty said.
Mammootty first won the Best Actor award for Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha and Mathilukal at the 37th National Film Awards. He received his second for Ponthan Mada and Vidheyan at the 41st edition, followed by his third for Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar at the 46th National Film Awards. His win for Bramayugam comes 28 years after his previous Best Actor honour.
Amitabh Bachchan has also won the National Film Award for Best Actor four times. He received the honour for Agneepath, Black, Paa, and Piku.
With Mammootty’s latest victory, the two actors now jointly hold the record for the highest number of National Film Award wins in the Best Actor category.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting announced the winners of the 72nd National Film Awards on July 18, recognising excellence in Indian cinema for films certified by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) between January 1 and December 31, 2024.
Kartik Aaryan and Mammootty shared the Best Actor award for their films Chandu Champion and Bramayugam, respectively.
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