Actor Manoj Bajpayee on Monday was declared Best Actor at the 67th National Film Awards along with Dhanush. This was Manoj's third national award. While Manoj won for Bhonsle, Dhanush received the award for the Tamil film Asuran.
"I am very happy and thankful to each and everyone who believed in this film and believed in me. I'm thankful to my director Devashish Makhija and my co-actors Santosh (Juvekar) and Ipshita (Chakraborty), my producers Sandiip Kapoor, Piiyush Singh, Saurabh (Gupta) and all of these guys. I'm feeling thankful to each and everyone who have supported this film and supported me from the depth of my heart. I really feel this is an award not only for me but for all of yours guys. When Bhonsle completed its journey with this National Award, I am only feeling thankful and nothing else," said Bajpayee.
The film deals with the real problem faced by migrants in Mumbai, which is relevant in the present times. Bajpayee plays the lead role of Ganpat Bhonsle, for which he has received critical acclaim.
Meanwhile, actress Kangana Ranaut won the National Film Award as Best actress for her performances in Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi and Panga. Sushant Singh Rajput's last theatrical release Chhichhore, directed by Nitesh Tiwari, won the best Hindi film award, Asuran won for best Tamil film and Jersey won for best Telugu film.
About her win for Manikarnika, she said: "I will be forever grateful to the whole team of Manikarnika for supporting me in every possible manner and standing by me. I want to share the National Award with each one of you." She also thanked the team of Panga.
Kangana thanked her fans and family, saying nothing would have been possible without their support. On Instagram, Kangana wrote as caption with the video: "Words can't express my feelings. Thank you so much."
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The awards were initially going to be held in May last year but were delayed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic. The awards are held by the Directorate of Film Festivals, an organization that comes under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
-with IANS inputs
