National Film Award for Best Malayalam Feature Film

The National Film Award for Best Malayalam Feature Film is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the National Film Development Corporation of India. It is one of several awards presented for feature films and awarded with Rajat Kamal (Silver Lotus). Since the 70th National Film Awards, the name was changed to "Best Malayalam Feature Film".^[1]

National Film Award for Best Malayalam Feature Film
National award for contributions to Indian Cinema
Awarded for	Best Malayalam Feature Film(s) of the year
Sponsored by	National Film Development Corporation of India
Formerly called	President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Malayalam (1954–1968) National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam (1969–2021)
Reward(s)	Rajat Kamal (Silver Lotus) ₹2,00,000
First awarded	1954
Last awarded	2022
Most recent winner	Saudi Vellakka
Highlights
Total awarded	78
First winner	Neelakuyil

The National Film Awards, established in 1954, are the most prominent film awards in India that merit the best of the Indian cinema. The ceremony also presents awards for films in various regional languages.

Awards for films in seven regional language (Bengali, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil and Telugu) started from 2nd National Film Awards which were presented on 21 December 1955.^[2] Three awards of "President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film", "Certificate of Merit for the Second Best Feature Film" and "Certificate of Merit for the Third Best Feature Film" were instituted. The later two certificate awards were discontinued from 15th National Film Awards (1967).

The first winner of the "President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Malayalam" was the 1954 film Neelakuyil. Jointly directed by P. Bhaskaran and Ramu Kariat, the film was based on a story written by Malayalam writer Uroob. It told the story of a love affair between a Dalit girl and an educated, high caste school teacher. The film is considered a landmark in Malayalam cinema history.^[3] Along with Neelakuyil, S. S. Rajan directed film Sneha Seema was honoured with a Certificate of Merit. Following is the list of Silver Lotus Award (Rajat Kamal) recipient films produced in Malayalam language.

Winners

Award includes 'Rajat Kamal' (Silver Lotus Award) and cash prize. Following are the award winners over the years:

Awards legends
*	President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film
*	Certificate of Merit for the Second Best Feature Film
*	Certificate of Merit for the Third Best Feature Film
*	Certificate of Merit for the Best Feature Film
*	Indicates a joint award for that year

List of award films, showing the year (award ceremony), producer(s), director(s) and citation
Year	Film(s)	Producer(s)	Director(s)	Citation	Refs.
1954 (2nd)	Neelakuyil	Chandrathara Productions	• P. Bhaskaran  • Ramu Kariat	–	[2]
	Snehaseema	Associate Pictures	S. S. Rajan	–
1955 (3rd)	No Award				[4]
1956 (4th)	No Award				[5]
1957 (5th)	Padatha Painkili	Neela Productions	P. Subramaniam	–	[6]
1958 (6th)	Nairu Pidicha Pulivalu	T. E. Vasudevan	P. Bhaskaran	–	[7]
	Randidangazhi	Neela Productions	P. Subramaniam	–
1959 (7th)	Chathurangam	Capt. (Dr.) G. T. Joshua	• J. D. Thottan  • D. V. Swamy	–	[8]
1960 (8th)	No Award				[9]
1961 (9th)	Mudiyanaya Puthran	Chandrathara Productions	Ramu Kariat	–	[10]
	Kandam Becha Kottu	Modern Theatres	T. R. Sundaram	–
	Sabarimala Ayyappan	K. Kuppuswamy	S. M. Sriramulu Naidu	–
1962 (10th)	Puthiya Akasam Puthiya Bhoomi	Associated Producers	M. S. Mani	–	[11]
	Kalpadukal	T. R. Raghavan	K. S. Anthony	–
1963 (11th)	Ninamaninja Kalpadukal	• K. V. Bhavadas  • N. K. Karunakara Pillai  • K. Parameshwaran Nair	N. N. Pisharody	–	[12]
	Doctor	H. H. Ebrahim	M. S. Mani	–
	Kalayum Kaminiyum	Neela Productions	P. Subramaniam	–
1964 (12th)	Aadyakiranangal	• P. Bhaskaran  • V. Abdullah	P. Bhaskaran	–	[13]
	Kudumbini	• P. A. Thomas  • J. Sasikumar	• P. A. Thomas  • J. Sasikumar	–
	Thacholi Othenan	T. K. Pareekutty	S. S. Rajan	–	[14]
1965 (13th)	Kavyamela	T. E. Vasudevan	M. Krishnan Nair	–	[15]
	Odayil Ninnu	P. Ramaswamy	K.S.Sethumadhavan	–
	Murappennu	K. Parameswaran Nair	A. Vincent	–
1966 (14th)	Kunjali Marikkar	T. K. Pareekutty	S. S. Rajan	–
1967 (15th)	Anveshichu Kandethiyilla	K. Ravindran Nair	P. Bhaskaran	–	[16]
1968 (16th)	Adhyapika	Neela Productions	P. Subramaniam	–	[17]
1969 (17th)	Adimakal	M. O. Joseph	K. S. Sethumadhavan	–	[18]
1970 (18th)	Ezhuthatha Kadha	Jai Maruthy Pictures	A. B. Raj	–	[19]
1971 (19th)	Karakanakadal	Hari Pothan	K. S. Sethumadhavan	–
1972 (20th)	Panitheeratha Veedu	K. S. R. Moorthy	K. S. Sethumadhavan	–	[20]
1973 (21st)	Gayathri	• A. R. Shreedharan Elayidom  • P. B. Ashram	P. N. Menon	–	[21]
1974 (22nd)	Uttarayanam	Pattathuvila Karunakaran	G. Aravindan	–	[22]
1975 (23rd)	Swapnadanam	T. Mohamed Bapu	K. G. George	–	[23]
1976 (24th)	Manimuzhakkam	Cartoonist Thomas	P. A. Backer	–
1977 (25th)	Kodiyettam	Kulathoor Bhaskaran Nair	Adoor Gopalakrishnan	For capturing with an unerring eye for detail the trivia of village life; for presenting through its calculated pace and rhythm a true slice of a rural culture in Kerala; for revealing through seemingly insignificant vignettes the gradual transformation of a casual village drifter into a person of genuine worth and true dignity.	[24]
1978 (26th)	Thampu	K. Ravindran Nair	G. Aravindan	For its cinematic virtousity and defiance of all narrative traditions of film making.	[25]
1979 (27th)	Peruvazhiyambalam	Prem Prakash	Padmarajan	–
1980 (28th)	Yagam	B. Chandramani Bai	Sivan	For presenting dilemma of romantic revolutionary who understands the futility of his misadventure at the cost of some rare moments of happiness, for successfully building up the sense of impending doom underlining the human relationships throughout the film.	[26]
1981 (29th)	Elippathayam	K. Ravindran Nair	Adoor Gopalakrishnan	For presenting the total decadence of the feudal system with unusual sensitivity and realism and for perceptively portraying the personal tragedy of those caught up in it.	[27]
1982 (30th)	Chappa	P. K. Abdul Latif	P. A. Backer	For its powerful depiction of a lone individual's determined fight against tyranny.	[28]
1983 (31st)	Malamukalile Daivam	Surya Mudra Films	P. N. Menon	For the courageous effort to present the cause of tribals and their efforts to join the national mainstream.	[29]
1984 (32nd)	Mukhamukham	K. Ravindran Nair	Adoor Gopalakrishnan	–	[30]
1985 (33rd)	Thinkalaazhcha Nalla Divasam	M. Mani	P. Padmarajan	For exploring the layers of family relationship in a rural setting threatened by urban culture and explains how the imminent breakdown of the joint family is prevented by a death.	[31]
1986 (34th)	Uppu	K. M. A. Rahim	V. K. Pavithran	For its depiction of people caught in the midst of religious conservatism.	[32]
1987 (35th)	Purushartham	P. T. K. Mohammad	K. R. Mohanan	For creating highly disciplined work of great formal quality of a little boy's discovery of his dead father's environment and his eventual alienation from his mother.	[33]
1988 (36th)	Rugmini	• S. C. Pillai  • Gigy Abraham	K. P. Kumaran	For compassionate depiction of the human condition permeating the dark realities of a social evil.	[34]
1989 (37th)	Mathilukal	Adoor Gopalakrishnan	Adoor Gopalakrishnan	For its remarkable creation of an imprisoned writer's mind hovering between the pain of confinement, existential apprehension of death and the hallucinatory "reality" of sensual love.	[35]
1990 (38th)	Vasthuhara	T. Ravindranath	G. Aravindan	For being a human document, depicting the cruelties meted out by society to the dispossessed.	[36]
1991 (39th)	Kadavu	M. T. Vasudevan Nair	M. T. Vasudevan Nair	For its simplicity of treatment in the delineation of rural life with a genuine feel for human values and relationships.	[37]
1992 (40th)	Swaroopam	P. T. K. Mohammed	K. R. Mohanan	For its original concept and in-depth exploration of the psyche of a man who escapes into the mystic past to flee from the harsh reality of everyday life.	[38]
1993 (41st)	Vidheyan	K. Ravi	Adoor Gopalakrishnan	For its in-depth handling and complex delineation of the psychological evolution of two characters, representative of the transformation of terror into power and its hold over the life of the existentialist outsider.	[39]
1994 (42nd)	Sukrutham	M. M. Ramachandran	Harikumar	Against the backdrop of impending death, complex marital and social relationships are explored.	[40]
1995 (43rd)	Ormakalundayirikkanam	Salam Karassery	T. V. Chandran	For the film, which through the eyes of a young boy traces the graph of a political transformation in Kerala.	[41]
1996 (44th)	Desadanam	Jayaraj	Jayaraj	For depicting in an excellent manner the conflicts between love, traditional bonds and duties, arising out of religious beliefs.	[42]
1997 (45th)	Mangamma	NFDC	T. V. Chandran	The film tells the story of a remarkable courageous middle class woman who takes challenge upon challenge in her stride. Each confrontation makes a comment on social structures.	[43]
1998 (46th)	Agnisakshi	Srishti Films	Shyamaprasad	It authentically deals with the social ambience prevailing among the brahmin community ages ago. The story unfolded through the bold adventures of one brahmin woman, Thethi, who finally takes to Sanyas.	[44]
1999 (47th)	Punaradhivasam	N. P. Prakash	V. K. Prakash	For depicting an intricately structured screenplay about the need for discovering new adjustments in family relationship and the complexities and fallacies of conjugal harmony.	[45]
2000 (48th)	Sayanam	M. P. Sukumaran Nair	M. P. Sukumaran Nair	For the film with a wonderful structure and well worked out mise-en-scenes tries to depict a complex story of the Christian community in a simple manner.	[46]
	Kochu Kochu Santhoshangal	Grihalakshmi Films	Sathyan Anthikad	For a brilliant narrative depicting the complex relationship between a dancer wife and a loving husband. It highlights the values of life, art and the co-existence of the two.
2001 (49th)	Dany	T. V. Chandran	T. V. Chandran	For documenting the life of an ordinary human being who is denied any meaningful relationship within his family. In the end however the film very subtly but effectively brings out the triumph of the dignity of human relationships.	[47]
2002 (50th)	Nizhalkuthu	Adoor Gopalakrishnan	Adoor Gopalakrishnan	For its exploration of the mind of a hangman.	[48]
2003 (51st)	Saphalam	Anil Thomas	Asok R. Nath	For its sensitive portrayal of an old couple in their loneliness and togetherness.	[49]
2004 (52nd)	Akale	Tom George Kolath	Shyamaprasad	For its sensitive handling of characters trapped in tragic situation, in an unconventional filmic way.	[50]
2005 (53rd)	Thanmathra	Century Films	Blessy	For the moving depiction of a middle class family which struggles to lead a dignified life in the face of the house holder’s gradual loss of memory.	[51]
2006 (54th)	Drishtantham	M. P. Sukumaran Nair	M. P. Sukumaran Nair	For a powerful tribute to the co modification of ancient tradition.	[52]
2007 (55th)	Ore Kadal	Vindhyan N. B.	Shyamaprasad	A well crafted movie on the emotional conflict of a middle class housewife irresistibly drawn to a radical intellectual.	[53]
2008 (56th)	Thirakkatha	Varnachithra Big Screen	Ranjith	For its poignant story of an actress told with sincerity and conviction.	[54]
2009 (57th)	Keralavarma Pazhassiraja	A. M. Gopalan	T. Hariharan	For recreating the life and times of a forgotten and unsung hero who gave the first call of freedom from British rule.	[55]
2010 (58th)	Veettilekkulla Vazhi	B. C. Joshi	Dr. Biju	For narrating the story of a doctor who overcomes personal loss to journey through an unfamiliar landscape to fulfil a promise to a dying mother and in the process finds a personal salvation.	[56]
2011 (59th)	Indian Rupee	August Cinema	Ranjith	For its seemingly breezy take on the booming real estate sector of urban Kerala, mirrored in towns and cities all over India, of irregularly employed youth who give up traditional values of family, society and education for quick money. But what director manages to communicate is the message that crime eventually does pay, but at almost unbearable loss of self esteem, panic, anxiety and loneliness.	[57]
2012 (60th)	Celluloid	• Kamal  • Ubaid	Kamal	The trials and tribulations of the passionate filmmaker and father of Malayalam cinema, J.C. Daniel are poignantly depicted in this biopic.	[58]
2013 (61st)	North 24 Kaatham	C. V. Sarathi	Anil Radhakrishnan Menon	A train journey that transforms an eccentric character by taking him through trying situations and making him more compassionate.	[59]
2014 (62nd)	Ain	1:1.3 Entertainments	Sidhartha Siva	For its gently nuanced narrative in which a carefree young man embraces responsibility and compassion for the lives of others.	[60]
2015 (63rd)	Pathemari	Allens Media	Salim Ahamed	For an artistically narrated saga of two generations of Malayali workers who migrated to the Persian Gulf region for livelihood, told through the poignant story of one man.	[61]
2016 (64th)	Maheshinte Prathikaaram	Dream Mill Cinemas and Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.	Dileesh Pothan	A roller coaster ride with tailor made characters.	[62]
2017 (65th)	Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum	Urvasi Theatres	Dileesh Pothan	–
2018 (66th)	Sudani from Nigeria	Happy Hours Entertainments	Zakariya Mohammed	With a backdrop of sports, the film explores the complexity of emotions in a mother-son relationship.
2019 (67th)	Kalla Nottam	First Print Studio	Rahul Riji Nair	Experimental portrayal of the realities of life where the exploitation of woman and blackmail is captured in a single lens.	[63]
2020 (68th)	Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam	Pushkar Films	Senna Hegde	A series of events happening in a marriage house shown in an interesting way as the bride has different plans.	[64]
2021 (69th)	Home	Vijay Babu	Rojin Thomas	-	[65]
2022 (70th)	Saudi Vellakka	Urvashi Theatres	Tharun Moorthy	-	[66]

References

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65. "69th National Film Awards:Rocketry, Alia Bhatt, Kriti Sanon, Allu Arjun win big. See complete list of winners here". Indian Express. 24 August 2023.
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External links

• Official Page for Directorate of Film Festivals, India
• National Film Awards Archives