# 49th National Film Awards

The 49th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 2001. Awards were announced by the committee headed by K. S. Sethumadhavan, K. K. Kapil and Bharat Gopy for the feature films, non-feature films and books written on Indian cinema, respectively, on 26 July 2002; whereas award ceremony took place on 13 February 2003 and awards were given away by then President of India, A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.

## Awards

Awards were divided into feature films, non-feature films and books written on Indian cinema.

### Lifetime Achievement Award

| Name of Award | Image | Awardee(s) | Awarded As | Awards |
| Dadasaheb Phalke Award | | Yash Chopra | director and producer | Swarna Kamal, ₹ 100,000 and a Shawl |

### Feature films

Feature films were awarded at All India as well as regional level. For 49th National Film Awards, a Kannada film, Dweepa won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film; whereas a Hindi film, Lagaan won the maximum number of awards (8). Following were the awards given in each category:

#### Juries

A committee headed by K. S. Sethumadhavan was appointed to evaluate the feature films awards. Following were the jury members:
* Jury Members
** K. S. Sethumadhavan (Chairperson) • S. Ali Raza • Arun Kaul • Aruna Harprasad • Chitra Lakshmanan • Chitra Mudgal • Hemen Das
** J. L. Ralhan • K. C. N. Chandrasekar • Ibohal Sharma • K. Sampath • K. S. Rama Rao • Meera Dewan • Nabyendu Chatterjee
** Pallavi Joshi • Pradip Biswas • Prakash Dubey • Rajeevnath • Ramesh Desai • Sanjay Surkar • Sanjeev Hazarika

#### All India Award

Following were the awards given:

##### Golden Lotus Award

Official name: Swarna Kamal
All the awardees are awarded with 'Golden Lotus Award (Swarna Kamal)', a certificate and cash prize.
| Name of Award | Name of Film | Language | Awardee(s) | Cash Prize |
| Best Feature Film | Dweepa | Kannada | Producer: Soundarya director: Girish Kasaravalli | ₹ 50,000/- Each |
| Citation: For the film combines integrity, creativity and aesthetics in its depiction of both the dilemmas and the spirit of a family who defy logic and weather to hold on to their roots. ||||
| Best Debut Film of a Director | Thiladaanam | Telugu | Producer: NFDC Director: K. N. T. Sastry | ₹ 25,000/- Each |
| Citation: For its juxtaposition of two diverse ideologies existing within the same family – the father's belief in his religion and traditions and his son's revolutionary ideology. The film strikes a very fine balance in inter-generational explorations. ||||
| Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment | Lagaan | Hindi | Producer: Aamir Khan Director: Ashutosh Gowariker | ₹ 40,000/- Each |
| Citation: For showing the victory of the human spirit in the face of oppression and for the creative use of a Cricket game as a metaphor for both colonisation and nationalism. ||||
| Best Direction | Ooruku Nooruper | Tamil | B. Lenin | ₹ 50,000/- |
| Citation: For telling the eventful story of a revolutionary who has killed for his cause and awarded the death sentence for his crime. It further looks at the issue of capital punishment. ||||

##### Silver Lotus Award

Official name: Rajat Kamal
All the awardees are awarded with 'Silver Lotus Award (Rajat Kamal)', a certificate and cash prize.
| Name of Award | Name of Film | Language | Awardee(s) | Cash Prize |
| Best Feature Film on National Integration | Bub | Kashmiri | Producer: NFDC Director: Jyoti Sarup | ₹ 30,000/- Each |
| Citation: For exploring the problems of a minority in the face of terrorist activities of forces across the border. Against this macro scenario, the film weaves together more intimate micro stories particularly of the bonding between a sensitive bureaucrat and an orphaned boy. ||||
| Best Film on Other Social Issues | Chandni Bar | Hindi | Producer: Lata Mohan Iyer Director: Madhur Bhandarkar | ₹ 30,000/- Each |
| Citation: For its realistic portrayal of the problems of an uprooted woman who is brought to Mumbai and forced to work in a beer bar. The film is a poignant and sensitive depiction of innocent girls trapped in the vicious cycle of survival in the underworld. ||||
| Best Actor | Neythukaran | Malayalam | Murali | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For his brilliant portrayal of a character called Mestry, a committed political worker, caught in a web of shifting values-political and social. ||||
| Best Actress | Chandni Bar | Hindi | Tabu | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| ₹ 10,000/- Each |||
| Best Actress | Mitr, My Friend | English | Shobana | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| ₹ 10,000/- Each |||
| Best Supporting Actor | Chandni Bar | Hindi | Atul Kulkarni | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For depicting a ruthless character, trapped in a world without social values. ||||
| Best Supporting Actress | Chandni Bar | Hindi | Ananya Khare | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For her humane and realistic performance of a complex character. ||||
| Best Child Artist | Kutty | Tamil | P. Shwetha | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For her subdued portrayal of Kutty, a young girl made to suffer the agonies of social disparity and human exploitation. ||||
| Best Male Playback Singer | • Lagaan ("Mitwa") • Dil Chahta Hain ("Jaane Kyon") | Hindi | Udit Narayan | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For the song "Mitwa" in Hindi film "Lagaan" and "Jaane Kyon Log Pyaar Karte Hain" in Hindi film "Dil Chahta Hai". ||||
| Best Female Playback Singer | Udayageethavin Azhagi ("Pattu Cholli") | Tamil | Sadhana Sargam | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For her lilting and touching rendering of the song. ||||
| Best Cinematography | Dweepa | Kannada | Cameraman: Ramachandra Halkere Laboratory Processing: Prasad Film Laboratory | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For his excellent camerawork that captures the agrarian milieu with strong visual metaphors. His work stands out for its deft handling of the situation, social vignettes and characters. ||||
| Best Screenplay | Show | Telugu | G. Neelakanta Reddy | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For the film, which seems to probes a real – unreal dramatic situation involving two characters full of emotion and conflicts, with a rare touch of artistic sensitivity. ||||
| Best Audiography | Lagaan | Hindi | • H. Sridhar • Nakul Kamte | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For The sound effects recorded both efficiently and imaginatively heighten the visual impact of the film. ||||
| Best Editing | Mitr, My Friend | English | Beena Paul | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For her crisp and taut cutting, makes her bag this award. The excellence is on view in frames offering imaginative touch. ||||
| Best Art Direction | Lagaan | Hindi | Nitin Chandrakant Desai | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For aesthetically recreating the pre independence period village with authentic details. ||||
| Best Costume Design | Lagaan | Hindi | Bhanu Athaiya | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For taking microscopic care in designing the costumes of pre independence era which gives the film an authentic look. ||||
| Best Music Direction | Lagaan | Hindi | Songs and Background Score: A. R. Rahman | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For a music score, that is both regional in character and popular in appeal bringing out the ethos of Saurashtra region. ||||
| Best Lyrics | Lagaan ("Radha Kaise Na Jale" and "Ghanan Ghanan") | Hindi | Javed Akhtar | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For using very simple language to bring out the richness of the Kutch locale. ||||
| Best Special Effects | Aalavandhan | Tamil | N. Madhusudhanan | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For its creative execution of live and animated special effects which enhance the dramatic impact of the film. ||||
| Best Choreography | Lagaan ("Ghanan Ghanan") | Hindi | Raju Khan | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For choreography of that particular song is very lively and skifully composed keeping our tradition and heritage in mind. ||||
| Special Jury Award | Kutty | Tamil | Janaki Vishwanathan (Director) | ₹ 25,000/- |
| Citation: For its realistic portrayal of the transition of a girl child from rural Tamilnadu to Chennai, in search of a livelihood. The film sensitises its viewers to the exploitation of child domestic labour, commonly prevalent within middle class families. ||||
| Special Mention | Panoi-Jongki | Miri / Mising | • Dilip Doley • Narayan Seal (Director) | Certificate Only |
| Citation: For effectively capturing the spirit of the colourful mongoloid tribe located at the foot hills of Arunachal Pradesh. ||||

#### Regional Awards

The award is given to best film in the regional languages in India.
| Name of Award | Name of Film | Awardee(s) | Cash Prize |
| Best Feature Film in Bengali | Hemanter Pakhi | Producer: NFDC Director: Urmi Chakraborty | ₹ 20,000/- Each |
| Citation: For showing the plight of an educated woman who seeks her own identity within the trappings of her traditional role of mother and wife. A contemporary socially relevant issue has been handled with great sensitivity. |||
| Best Feature Film in Hindi | Dil Chahta Hai | Producer: Ritesh Sidhwani Director: Farhan Akhtar | ₹ 20,000/- Each |
| Citation: For artistically and humorously portraying the growing up years of young persons in modern society. |||
| Best Feature Film in Kannada | Atithi | Producer: Mitrachitra Director: P. Sheshadri | ₹ 20,000/- Each |
| Citation: For addressing the universal affliction of terrorism. It portrays the impact of this scourge on innocent lives, human relations and behavioural patterns. It examines the issue at a human level with which viewers can empathise. |||
| Best Feature Film in Malayalam | Dany | Producer: T. V. Chandran Director: T. V. Chandran | ₹ 20,000/- Each |
| Citation: 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. |||
| Best Feature Film in Odia | Magunira Shagada | Producer: NFDC Director: Prafulla Mohanty | ₹ 20,000/- Each |
| Citation: For showing the agony of a man trapped within tradition and unable to accept the changes that impact life around him. |||
| Best Feature Film in Tamil | Ooruku Nooruper | Producer: L. Suresh Director: B. Lenin | ₹ 20,000/- Each |
| Citation: For depicting a thought provoking story about crime, based on ideology. It reflects upon life, death and justice. |||
| Best Feature Film in Telugu | Show | Producer: Manjula Ghattamaneni Director: G. Neelakanta Reddy | ₹ 20,000/- Each |
| Citation: For depicting the development of human relations between two strangers with spontaneous humour and rare insight into life. |||
Best Feature Film in Each of the Language Other Than Those Specified in the Schedule VIII of the Constitution
| Name of Award | Name of Film | Awardee(s) | Cash Prize |
| Best Feature Film in English | Mitr, My Friend | Producer: Suresh Menon Director: Revathi | ₹ 20,000/- Each |
| Citation: For depicting the agony of individuals torn between social values practised in different societies. It explores the nuances of emotions within a marriage and family. |||

### Non-Feature Films

Short Films made in any Indian language and certified by the Central Board of Film Certification as a documentary/newsreel/fiction are eligible for non-feature film section.

#### Juries

A committee headed by K. K. Kapil was appointed to evaluate the non-feature films awards. Following were the jury members:
* Jury Members
** K. K. Kapil (Chairperson) • Dinkar Chowdhary • K. Sudhakar Rao • Naresh Bedi • Shalini Shah

#### Golden Lotus Award

Official name: Swarna Kamal
All the awardees are awarded with 'Golden Lotus Award (Swarna Kamal)', a certificate and cash prize.
| Name of Award | Name of Film | Language | Awardee(s) | Cash Prize |
| Best Non-Feature Film | Sonal | Hindi and English | Producer: Films Division Director: Prakash Jha | ₹ 25,000/- Each |
| Citation: For its excellent use of the cinematic medium to give an insight into one of the greatest dancers of India. ||||
| Best Non-Feature Film Direction | Jorasanko Thakurbari | English | Buddhadeb Dasgupta | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For artistically unfolding the history of the house of the Tagores. ||||

#### Silver Lotus Award

Official name: Rajat Kamal
All the awardees are awarded with 'Silver Lotus Award (Rajat Kamal)' and cash prize.
| Name of Award | Name of Film | Language | Awardee(s) | Cash Prize |
| Best First Non-Feature Film | Diary of a Housewife | Malayalam | Producer: Asha Joseph and Vinod Sukumaran Director: Vinod Sukumaran | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For the innovative approach in narrating the pathos of a housewife who is waiting for her husband to return from war. ||||
| Best Anthropological / Ethnographic Film | The Monpas of Arunachal Pradesh | English | Producer: Films Division Director: Aribam Syam Sharma | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For exploring the vibrant rites and rituals of the Monpa tribe. ||||
| Best Biographical Film | Teejan Bai | Hindi | Producer: Kuldeep Sinha for Films Division Director: V. Packirisamy | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For the portrayal of the success story of the folk artist. ||||
| Best Environment / Conservation / Preservation Film | The Holy Ganga | Hindi | Producer: Y.N. Engineer for Films Division Director: Viplove Bhatia | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For its thought provoking content which makes the viewers realise how badly the mother Ganga is treated. ||||
| Best Promotional Film | News Magazine No. 458 (In Search of Muga Silk) | English | Producer: Y.N. Engineer for Films Division Director: K.G. Das | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For depicting the unique art of Muga silk weaving of Assam. ||||
| Best Film on Social Issues | A New Paradigm | English | Producer: Aruna Raje Patil Director: Aruna Raje Patil | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For dealing with the lives of the mentally challenged, the trauma of their relatives and the endless effort of the teachers to bring hope to this segment of the society. ||||
| Best Educational / Motivational / Instructional Film | Kanavu Malayilekku | Malayalam | Producer: Tomy Mathew Director: M.G. Sasi | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For its attempt to reassert the tribal identity and impart a sense of dignity to the tribal children. ||||
| Best Investigative Film | Kalahandi | Oriya and English | Producer: Soudamini Mishra Director: Gautam Ghose | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For its courageous expose of endemic poverty in the backward region of Orissa and the state's apathy to it. ||||
| Best Animation Film | The Pink Camel | Hindi | Producer: Children's Film Society Director: Paushali Ganguli Animator: Paushali Ganguli | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For interesting animation, enlightening the viewers against superstitions. ||||
| Best Short Fiction Film | Chaitra | Marathi | Producer: Film and Television Institute of India Director: Kranti Kanade | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For beautifully exploring human relations centred around an age-old ritual of Haldi and Kumkum. ||||
| Best Film on Family Welfare | Sayante Thinte Padavukal | Malayalam | Producer: Ratheesh Ramayya Director: Satheesh Venganoor | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| Citation: For sensitive portrayal of the plight of the aged who are neglected by their families. ||||
| Best Cinematography | Jorasanko Thakurbari | English | Cameraman: Nilotpal Sarkar Laboratory Processing: Prasad Film Laboratory | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| ₹ 10,000/- Each |||
| Best Cinematography | The Monpas of Arunachal Pradesh | English | Cameraman: Irom Maipak Laboratory Processing: Prasad Kalinga Lab | ₹ 10,000/- Each |
| ₹ 10,000/- Each |||
| Best Audiography | Enough of Silence | English | Anup Mukherjee | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For adding a new dimension to the film through innovative sound track. ||||
| Best Editing | Athman | Universal | Ajith | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For maintaining the pace and drama of the film without any spoken words. ||||
| Best Music Direction | Chaitra | Marathi | Bhaskar Chandavarkar | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For creating traditional music that blends aesthetically with the theme of the film. ||||
| Special Jury Award | Orchestra | Hindi | Kireet Khurana (Producer) Bhimsain (Director) | ₹ 10,000/- |
| Citation: For effectively conveying the message of national integration through synchronous use of sound and animated images of musical instruments. ||||
| Special Mention | Kalahandi | Oriya and English | A. R. Tripathi | Certificate Only |
| Certificate Only |||
| Special Mention | Chaitra | Marathi | Sonali Kulkarni (Actor) | Certificate Only |
| Certificate Only |||

### Best Writing on Cinema

The awards aim at encouraging study and appreciation of cinema as an art form and dissemination of information and critical appreciation of this art-form through publication of books, articles, reviews etc.

#### Juries

A committee headed by Bharat Gopy was appointed to evaluate the writing on Indian cinema. Following were the jury members:
* Jury Members
** Bharat Gopy (Chairperson) • Ratnottama Sengupta • Savita Bhakhry

#### Golden Lotus Award

Official name: Swarna Kamal
All the awardees are awarded with 'Golden Lotus Award (Swarna Kamal)' and cash prize.
| Name of Award | Name of Book | Language | Awardee(s) | Cash Prize |
| Best Book on Cinema | Asoumiya Chalachitrar Chaa-Pohar | Assamese | Author: Apurba Sarma Publisher: Jnan Pujari | ₹ 7,500/- Each |
| ₹ 7,500/- Each |||
| Best Book on Cinema | Moulik Marathi Chitrageete | Marathi | Author: Gangadhar Mahambare Publisher: Rajiv D. Barve | ₹ 7,500/- Each |
| ₹ 7,500/- Each |||
| Best Film Critic | | Hindi | Vinod Anupam | ₹ 15,000/- |
| Citation: For the deep insight and social concern reflected in his questioning of phenomenon as varied as the disappearance of villages from Hindi screen and the glorification of terrorism. ||||

#### Special Mention

All the award winners are awarded with Certificate of Merit.
| Name of Award | Language | Awardee(s) | Cash Prize |
| Special Mention (Film Critic) | Malayalam | Author: C. S. Venkiteswaran | Certificate Only |
| Citation: For his serious approach in understanding the celluloid idiom and its social implications. ||||

### Awards not given

Following were the awards not given as no film was found to be suitable for the award:
* Best Children's Film
* Best Film on Family Welfare
* Best Film on Environment / Conservation / Preservation
* Best Feature Film in Assamese
* Best Feature Film in Manipuri
* Best Feature Film in Marathi
* Best Feature Film in Punjabi
* Best Arts / Cultural Film
* Best Scientific Film
* Best Agricultural Film
* Best Historical Reconstruction / Compilation Film
* Best Exploration / Adventure Film