National Film Awards 2026
This is the big one for 2026 in India — the 72nd National Film Awards were just announced on July 18, 2026. Plus the Padma Awards and e-Governance awards.
1. 72nd National Film Awards 2026
For films certified by CBFC between Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024. Selected by an 11-member jury headed by filmmaker Jayaraj.
Top Honours:
Best Feature Film: Article 370
Best Actor (shared): Kartik Aaryan for Chandu Champion and Mammootty for Bramayugam
Best Actress: Yami Gautam for Article 370
Best Director: Rajkumar Periasamy for Amaran
Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment: Kalki 2898 AD
Best Film Promoting National, Social and Environmental Values: Captain Miller
Regional Best Films:
Best Hindi: Srikanth
Best Tamil: Raayan, Best Telugu: Committee Kurrollu, Best Malayalam: Feminichi Fathima, Best Kannada: Mithya
Best Bengali: Chalchitra Ekhon, Best Assamese: Juiphool, Best Odia: Lahari, Best Marathi: Mukkam Post Bombilwadi
Technical & Other Major Winners:
Best Supporting Actor: Sanjay Mishra (Bhakshak), Best Supporting Actress: Sachana Namidass (Maharaja) / Ropashree Varkady per ET list
Best Music (Songs): Shashwat Sachdev (Article 370), Background Score: G.V. Prakash Kumar (Amaran)
Best Cinematography: Shehnad Jalal for Bramayugam
Best Production Design: Nitin Zihani Choudhary for Kalki 2898 AD
Best Costume: Deepali Noor and Sheetal Sharma for Pushpa: The Rule Part 2
Best Lyrics: Manoj Muntashir, Best Choreography: Vijay Ganguly (Stree)
Best Non-Feature Film: Bhangaar (Obsolete), Best Short Film: Hamsafar
Full list was published by Ministry of I&B — Kalki, Article 370, Chandu Champion, Bramayugam, Pushpa 2 were the biggest winners overall.
2. Padma Awards 2026
Announced on Republic Day eve, Jan 25, 2026. Total 131 awards including 5 Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan and 113 Padma Shri.
President Droupadi Murmu presented them in two investiture ceremonies in May and June at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Padma Vibhushan 2026 winners include:
Shri Dharmendra Singh Deol (Posthumous) – Art, Shri K T Thomas – Public Affairs, Ms. N Rajam – Art, Shri P Narayanan – Literature & Education, Shri V S Achuthanandan (Posthumous) – Public Affairs
Key Padma Bhushan / Padma Shri names this year: Mammootty, Alka Yagnik, R Madhavan, Rohit Sharma, advertising legend Piyush Pandey (posthumous), Uday Kotak, Harmanpreet Kaur, former UGC chairman Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar and late Dharmendra honoured at the ceremony.
3. National Awards for e-Governance 2026
Announced June 4, 2026 — 16 projects awarded Gold, Silver and Jury awards.
Big winners:
Agri Stack by Agriculture Ministry, e-Jagriti by Consumer Affairs Ministry (Silver), and Mahakumbh 2025 management by Prayagraj Mela Authority
Gold: Kerala High Court DCMS, Ministry of Health’s AI-enabled Clinical Decision Support System on eSanjeevani, Panchayat Advancement Index by Ministry of Panchayati Raj
Awards were presented at the 29th National Conference on e-Governance held July 1-2, 2026 in Jaipur.