At the 65th National Film Awards declared on Friday, A.R. Rahman bagged two awards—Best Background Score for Mom, and Best Music Direction for Kaatru Veliyidai.
The awards were decided by a jury headed by renowned filmmaker Shekhar Kapur. The 10-member-panel comprises screenwriter Imtiaz Hussain, lyricist Mehboob, actress Gautami Tadimalla and Kannada director P. Sheshadri among others.
"I didn't know such great films were being made in regional cinema," said Shekhar Kapur as he announced the awards. Hindi cinema cannot compete with them, he said. Announcing special mention awards, he said, “special mention award for Malayalam film Take Off and performance by actress Parvathy.”
Pankaj Tripathi gets special mention for his performance in Newton.
Best Marathi film: Kaccha Limbu
Best Malayalam film Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum. Spectacular performances, and screenplay, said Shekhar Kapur on the film.
Best Hindi film: Newton.