The 52nd 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 2004.
The selection process of 52nd National Film Awards began with the constitution of three Juries for feature film, non-feature film and best writing on cinema sections. The filmmaker Sudhir Mishra headed the feature film Jury, which had sixteen other members. Cinematographer and Director A. K. Bir headed the seven-member non-feature film Jury. The Jury for best writing on cinema was headed by veteran film critic and former editor of Screen and Filmfare from Mumbai, Rauf Ahmed.
Awards were announced by each committee chairpersons on 13 July 2005. Award ceremony took place at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi on 21 October 2005 and awards were given by then President of India, Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.
For 52nd National Film Awards, 107 feature films participated along with 118 non-feature films and 22 books on cinema in 9 Indian languages.
Awards
Awards were divided into feature films, non-feature films and books written on Indian cinema.
Lifetime Achievement Award
Name of AwardImageAwardee(s)Awarded AsAwardsDadasaheb Phalke AwardAdoor GopalakrishnandirectorSwarna Kamal, and a Shawl
Feature films
Feature films were awarded at All India as well as regional level. For 52nd National Film Awards, a Hindi film, Page 3 won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film also winning the maximum number of awards (3), along with a Tamil film, Autograph. Following were the awards given in each category:
Juries
A committee headed by Sudhir Mishra was appointed to evaluate the feature films awards. Following were the jury members:
Jury Members Sudhir Mishra (Chairperson)Preeti SagarVanisriSatabdi RoyL. VaidyanathanSandeep SawantSubhadro ChaudhuryChandi Mukherjee Sharad DuttBhajan SoporiT. S. NagabharanaNagesh KukunoorRanjeet DasM. SanjeevM. MohanVinod GanatraVasantha S. M. A.
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 AwardName of FilmLanguageAwardee(s)Cash prizeBest Feature FilmPage 3HindiProducer: Bobby Pushkarnadirector: Madhur Bhandarkar 50,000/- EachCitation: For a complex and daring attempt which exposes the shallow world of Page 3 in a manner which is both savagely satirical yet gently ironical.Best Debut Film of a DirectorGrahanamTeluguProducer: N. Anji ReddyDirector: Mohan Krishna Indraganti 25,000/- EachCitation: For invoking nostalgia in a manner that is powerful yet poetic.Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome EntertainmentVeer-ZaaraHindiProducer: Yash Raj FilmsDirector: Yash Chopra 20,000/- EachCitation: For invoking a touching tale of love highlighting the importance of human relationship above man-made boundaries.AutographTamilProducer: CheranDirector: Cheran 20,000/- EachCitation: For invoking nostalgia in a manner that is powerful yet poetic.Best Children's FilmChutkan Ki MahabharatHindiProducer: Children's Film SocietyDirector: Sankalp Meshram 30,000/- EachCitation: The film is phantasanagonic story of a boy whose dreams start coming true suddenly. All hell breaks loose when a Nautanki comes to village to play Mahabharata and suddenly its story changes. The warring Kaurvas and Pandavas bury their differences and become friends even before the war has begun.Best DirectionSwapner DinBengaliBuddhadeb Dasgupta 50,000/-Citation: For his appropriate usage of metaphors and complex handling of socio political situation present in West Bengal in a language simultaneously cinematic and poetic.
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 AwardName of FilmLanguageAwardee(s)Cash prizeBest Feature Film on National IntegrationNetaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten HeroHindiProducer: Sahara India Media Communication Ltd.Director: Shyam Benegal 30,000/- EachCitation: Netaji is one of the most controversial and colourful figures of modern Indian history. His struggle to fight the Britishers and bring the Indians together to do this. The idealistic dreamer turns into a revolutionary to achieve his goal. The film effectively brings alive the era.Best Film on Family WelfareHasinaKannadaProducer: Chiguru ChitraDirector: Girish Kasaravalli 30,000/- EachCitation: The film deals with a social evil of family planning in a Muslim community. The story of women and her children deserted by a drunkard husband is handled in a unique and subtle way.Best Film on Other Social IssuesPerumazhakkalamMalayalamProducer: Salim PadiyathDirector: Kamal 30,000/- EachCitation: For its deft handling of a complex, sensitive issue in a very sensitive manner. The central characters in the film reflect the traditional virtues of the Indian women, such as self-sacrifice, endurance and forgiveness, to bring two communities together.Best Film on Environment / Conservation / PreservationDevraiMarathiProducer: Y. N. Oak 30,000/-Director: Sumitra Bhave and Sunil Sukthankar 15,000/- EachCitation: In this chaotic world, when every body talks about the importance of environment, conservation and preservation but no body cares to learn from the wisdom of myth created by our forefathers and create a space for every mind to realise its potential without judging, discriminating or condemning.Best ActorHum TumHindiSaif Ali Khan 10,000/-Citation: For his sheer ease, subtlety and spontaneity in portraying a complex and demanding role.Best ActressHasinaKannadaThaara 10,000/-Citation: For her powerful portrayal of a young Muslim wife boldly questioning the traditional laws of her community. Her ability to convey the range of various moods through her performance in a forceful manner is appreciated.Best Supporting ActorKrantikaalBengaliHaradhan Bandopadhyay 10,000/-Citation: For his subtle yet powerful performance which is understated portraying a helpless bedridden old royal.Best Supporting ActressAkaleMalayalamSheela 10,000/-Citation: For the grace with which she handles the tragedy of a community that is slowly fading away.Best Child ArtistChhota SipahiHindiOm Bhutkar 10,000/-Citation: For his gradual evolution from a naïve innocent young child to a patriot in the liberation movement of Goa.Best Male Playback SingerSwadesHindiUdit Narayan 10,000/-Citation: For the song to honour his soulful rendition of this beautiful Rahman melody with imaging modulation.Best Female Playback SingerAutographTamilK. S. Chithra 10,000/-Citation: For expressive and soulful rendition of the song with powerful voice throw suitable to the text and the scene.Best CinematographySwadesHindiCameraman: Mahesh AneyLaboratory Processing: Adlabs 15,000/-Citation: For his lens that captures the rural Indian landscape with reality and harshness.Best ScreenplayPage 3HindiManoj TyagiNina Arora 10,000/-Citation: For telling a complex story in a stunningly simple manner. It takes you into the empty shallow world of Page 3, in a manner which is funny yet deeply empathetic.Best AudiographyIti SrikantaBengaliAnup Mukhopadhyay 10,000/-Citation: For finest recordings of the sound in a superb way that lends an extra dimension to the film.Best EditingPage 3HindiSuresh Pai 10,000/-Citation: For the crisp cutting which gives a finesse to the film and the successfully sustains the tempo of the film and mood and emotion while never losing the narrative.Best Art DirectionNetaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten HeroHindiSamir Chanda 10,000/-Citation: For effectively recreating the period prior to the second world war across nations.Best Costume DesignHasinaKannadaIshrath NissarM. N. Swamy 10,000/-Citation: For the costumes that lent a realistic feel to the characters thereby adding to their credibility.Best Music DirectionSwarabhishekamTeluguSongs and Background Score: Vidyasagar 10,000/-Citation: For the songs that are composed as per the situation and enrich the theme of the film. From the beginning to the end he has maintained traditional classical music and used Indian acoustic instruments thus bringing out the colour and flavor of Indian music.Best LyricsAutographTamilP. Vijay 10,000/-Citation: For or meaningful and powerful lyrics generating hope for a better future.Best Special EffectsAnjiTeluguSanath (Fire Fly Digital) 10,000/-Citation: For imaginative and effective creation of an outside world using special effects.Best ChoreographyLakshyaHindiPrabhu Deva 10,000/-Citation: For his imaginative, spectacular and rhythmic dance composition.Special Jury AwardDancerTamilJ. Phillip (Actor) 25,000/-Citation: For his incredible acting and dance performance despite being a physically challenged person.Special MentionDes Hoyaa PardesPunjabiGurdas Maan (Actor)Certificate OnlyCitation: For an effective portrayal of an innocent, helpless, patriotic young Punjabi landlord caught in crossfire between terrorists and the police.OridamMalayalamPradeep Nair (Director)Citation: For his credible attempt at creating a new imagery and effective cinematic language in his debut film.
Regional Awards
The award is given to best film in the regional languages in India.
Name of AwardName of FilmAwardee(s)Cash prizeBest Feature Film in AssameseDinabandhooProducer: Krishna RoyDirector: Munin Barua 20,000/- EachCitation: For a human struggle against circumstances, mainly because of dowry as well as social status.Best Feature Film in BengaliKrantikaalProducer: Shampa BhattacharjeeDirector: Sekhar Das 20,000/- EachCitation: For dialectical portrayal of a terrorist’s critical encounter with a decadent Bengali royal culture trapped in a time wrap.Best Feature Film in HindiRaincoatProducer: Shree Venkatesh FilmsDirector: Rituparno Ghosh 20,000/- EachCitation: For its subtle handling of human relationship in a low-keyed fashion yet mentioning the warmth of a lost love.Best Feature Film in KannadaBeruProducer: MitrachitraDirector: P. Sheshadri 20,000/- EachCitation: For critical analysis of bureaucratic corruption through the eyes of a folk dancer and its ironic overtone.Best Feature Film in KonkaniAleeshaProducer: Rajendra Talak CreationsDirector: Rajendra Talak 20,000/- EachCitation: For its concern about pollution and protection at the same time exposing corruption.Best Feature Film in MalayalamAkaleProducer: Tom George KolathDirector: Shyamaprasad 20,000/- EachCitation: For its sensitive handling of characters trapped in tragic situation, in an unconventional filmic way.Best Feature Film in MarathiUttarayanProducer: Opticus FilmsDirector: Bipin Nadkarni 20,000/- EachCitation: For its portrayal of nostalgic love between two aged characters and their problems with the next generation.Best Feature Film in PunjabiDes Hoyaa PardesProducer: Manjeet MaanDirector: Manoj Punj 20,000/- EachCitation: For its sharp handling of terrorism in Punjab and portrayal of alienation, migration of Punjabi youth to the west of that time.Best Feature Film in TamilNavarasaProducer: Sunil DoshiDirector: Santosh Sivan 20,000/- EachCitation: For its credible exploitation of the world of the third gender blended with director's own cinematic style.Best Feature Film in TeluguSwarabhishekamProducer: H. Gopalakrishna MurthyDirector: K. Viswanath 20,000/- EachCitation: For its excellent musical structure clubbed with great classical musical performance.
Best Feature Film in Each of the Language Other Than Those Specified in the Schedule VIII of the Constitution
Name of AwardName of FilmAwardee(s)Cash prizeBest Feature Film in EnglishAmuProducer: Shonali BoseDirector: Shonali Bose 20,000/- EachCitation: For its innovative style of handling a girl’s search for her identity and her encounter with a scarred society.
Non-Feature Films