• The ‘Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director’ and the ‘Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration’ have been retitled.

• The names of the late Prime Minister and legendary actor were dropped as part of a raft of changes for the National Film Awards.

• The ‘Regulations of 70th National Film Awards 2022’ reflects the changes suggested by a committee set up by the information & broadcasting ministry to rationalise the honours given in different categories. 

Key changes:

• In accordance with the changes suggested by the committee, and included in the regulations, the ‘Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director’ has been renamed ‘Best Debut Film of a Director’. The prize money, which was earlier split between the producer and the director, will now only go to the director.

• Similarly, the ‘Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration’ will now be called the ‘Best Feature Film Promoting National, Social and Environmental Values’. This category also merges award sections for social issues and environment conservation into one.

• The changes include an upward revision in the cash rewards, including for the Dadasaheb Phalke award, and several awards being fused.

• The monetary reward for the Dadasaheb Phalke award, which is presented every year to an Indian film personality for their outstanding contribution to Indian cinema, has been increased from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 15 lakh.

• Besides, the prize money for the Swarn Kamal awards has been increased to Rs 3 lakh and to Rs 2 lakh for Rajat Kamal winners across categories. Earlier, the award money varied from category to category. 

• Swarn Kamal is given in these categories — best film, debut film, film providing wholesome entertainment, direction and children's film.

• Rajat Kamal is given to winners of best feature film promoting national, social and environmental values, all the acting categories, best screenplay, music and other such categories.

National Film Awards

• The National Film Awards are the most prestigious film awards in India. The awards are intended to encourage the production of films that are both artistically and technically excellent, as well as socially relevant, and that contribute to the understanding and appreciation of cultures from various parts of the country through cinematic representation, thereby promoting national unity and integrity.

• The National Film Awards were established in 1954, when the awards were given for the films of the year 1953. The awards were initially called ‘State Awards’.

• Two President’s Gold Medals, two certificates of merit, and 12 silver medals for regional films were presented in the earlier years.

• The first Best Actor and Best Actress awards were given to Uttam Kumar and Nargis, respectively, in 1968. This was after the awards for artists and technicians were separately established for the films of 1967. The Best Actress award was initially called ‘Urvashi’ and the Best Actor award was called ‘Bharat’.

• The Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF) was set up under the ministry of information & broadcasting in 1973 with the objective of promotion of Indian films and cultural exchange through organisation of various events in the country and participation in various International film festivals abroad.

• National Film Awards have been administered by the DFF since 1973.

The Awards are categorised into three sections:

i) Feature Films

ii) Non-Feature Films

iii) Best Writing on Cinema. 

• Feature Film and Non-Feature Film sections aim at encouraging the production of films of aesthetic and technical excellence and social relevance. These contribute to the understanding and appreciation of cultures of different regions of the country in cinematic form, thereby promoting unity and integrity of the nation. 

• The Best Writing on Cinema section promotes the study and appreciation of cinema as an art form and dissemination of information, and critical appreciation through publication of books, articles, and reviews.

• The Most Film Friendly State award is also given, along with the National Film Awards, to a state of India that has been helpful in furthering the growth of the film industry by creating an environment for ease of filming in the state, encouraging skill/talent development among other pro-active initiatives.

• The National Film Awards along with cinema’s highest honour, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, are presented by the President of India.

Dadasaheb Phalke Award

• To honour the ‘Father of Indian Cinema’, Dhundiraj Govind Phalke, the National Film Awards named the most prestigious and coveted award of Indian Cinema after him. 

• He is the man who made the first Indian Feature film Raja Harishchandra in 1913. Popularly known as Dadasaheb Phalke, he then went on to make 95 films and 26 short films in a span of 19 years. 

• The Dadasaheb Phalke Award was introduced in 1969 by the government to recognise the contribution of film personalities towards the development of Indian Cinema. 

• The first recipient of this award was Devika Rani.

• Dadasaheb Phalke Award is given to a film personality for his/her outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian cinema.

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