National Film Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role

The National Film Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India since 1968 to an actress for the best performance in a leading role within the Indian film industry.[1][2] The National Film Awards were called the "State Awards for Films" when established in 1954. The State Awards instituted the "Best Actress" category in 1968 as the "Urvashi Award for the Best Actress";[1][3][4] in 1975, the Urvashi Award was renamed as the "Rajat Kamal Award for the Best Actress". Throughout the years, accounting for ties and repeat winners, the Government of India has presented a total of 56 Best Actress awards to 45 different actresses. Since the 70th National Film Awards, the name was changed to "National Film Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role".[5]

National Film Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Shabana Azmi, Actress with a Record of Five in this Category
Awarded forBest performance by an actress in a leading role
Sponsored byNational Film Development Corporation of India
Formerly calledUrvashi Award (1967–1973)
National Film Award for Best Actress (1974–2021)
Reward(s)
  • Rajat Kamal (Silver Lotus)
  • ₹2,00,000
First awarded1967
Last awarded2022
Most recent winnerNithya Menen for Thiruchitrambalam and
Manasi Parekh for Kutch Express
Highlights
Most awardsShabana Azmi
(5 awards)
Total awarded56
First winnerNargis Dutt
Websitehttp://dff.nic.in/NFA.aspx Edit this on Wikidata

Until 1974, winners of the National Film Award received a figurine and certificate; since 1975, they have been awarded with a "Rajat Kamal" (silver lotus), certificate and a cash prize that amounted to 2 lakh (US$2,400) in the 70th edition.[5][3] Although the Indian film industry produces films in more than 20 languages and dialects,[6] the actresses whose performances have won awards have worked in eleven major languages: Hindi (22 awards),Tamil (8 awards), Bengali (7 awards), Malayalam (6 awards), Telugu (4 awards), Kannada (3 awards), English (3 awards), Marathi (2 awards), Assamese (one award),Gujarati (one award) and Urdu (one award).

The first recipient was Nargis Dutt from Hindi cinema, who was honoured at the 15th National Film Awards (1967) for her performance in Raat Aur Din.[7] The actress who won the most Rajat Kamal awards is Shabana Azmi with five wins,[8] followed by Sharada and Kangana Ranaut with three wins. As of 2021, four actresses—Smita Patil, Archana, Shobana, and Tabu who have won the award two times. Sharada, Archana and Shobana are the only three actresses to get the award for performing in two different languages. Sharada was bestowed with the awards for her performances in two Malayalam films: Thulabharam and Swayamvaram in 1968 and 1972 respectively, and in 1978 for the Telugu film Nimajjanam. Archana was first honoured in 1987 for the Tamil film Veedu and was awarded for the second time in 1988 for the Telugu film Daasi. Shobana received her first award for the Malayalam film Manichitrathazhu in 1993, and her second for the English film Mitr, My Friend in 2001. As of 2020, the late Monisha Unni remains the youngest recipient of the honour; she was awarded for the Malayalam film Nakhakshathangal in 1986 when she was 16.[9][10] Indrani Haldar and Rituparna Sengupta are the only two actresses to be honoured for the same film—Dahan. Kangana Ranaut is the only actress to be honoured for her performance in two different films (Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi and Panga) in the same year. Sridevi is the only actress who was honoured posthumously for her performance in Mom (2017).[11] The most recent recipient are Nithya Menen and Manasi Parekh, who were honoured at the 70th National Film Awards for their performances in the 2022 Tamil film Thiruchitrambalam and the 2022 Gujarati film Kutch Express respectively.

Symbol Meaning
Year Indicates the year in which the film was censored by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC)
Indicates a joint award for that year
Indicates that the winner won the award for two performances in that year

Recipients

edit
List of award recipients, showing the year, role(s), film(s) and language(s)
Year[a] Photo Recipient(s) Role(s) Work(s) Language(s) Refs.[b]
1967
(15th)
  Nargis Dutt Varuna / Peggy [c] Raat Aur Din Hindi [13][14]
1968
(16th)
Sharada Vijaya Thulabharam Malayalam [15][16]
1969
(17th)
  Madhabi Mukherjee Supriya Dibratrir Kabya Bengali [17]
1970
(18th)
Rehana Sultan Salma Ahmed Dastak Hindi [17][18]
1971
(19th)
Waheeda Rehman Reshma Reshma Aur Shera Hindi [19]
1972
(20th)

Sharada Sita Swayamvaram Malayalam [20][21]
1973
(21st)
Nandini Bhaktavatsala Kamali Kaadu Kannada [3][22]
1974
(22nd)
  Shabana Azmi Lakshmi Ankur Hindi [4]
1975
(23rd)
  Sharmila Tagore Chanda Thapa,
Kajli [d]
Mausam [24][25]
1976
(24th)
  Lakshmi Ganga Sila Nerangalil Sila Manithargal Tamil [26]
1977
(25th)
  Smita Patil Urvashi / Usha [e] Bhumika Hindi [27][28]
1978
(26th)
Sharada Bharathi Nimajjanam Telugu [29]
1979
(27th)
Shoba Kuppamma Pasi Tamil [30][31]
1980
(28th)
  Smita Patil Amma Chakra Hindi [32]
1981
(29th)
  Rekha Amiran (Umrao Jaan) [f] Umrao Jaan Urdu [34]
1982
(30th)
  Shabana Azmi Pooja Inder Malhotra Arth Hindi [35][36]
1983
(31st)
Jamini Khandhar [37][38]
1984
(32nd)
Rama Paar [39][40]
1985
(33rd)
  Suhasini Sindhu Sindhu Bhairavi Tamil [41]
1986
(34th)
Monisha Unni Gouri Nakhakshathangal Malayalam [9]
1987
(35th)
 
Archana Sudha Veedu Tamil [42]
1988
(36th)
Kamalakshi Daasi Telugu [43]
1989
(37th)
Sreelekha Mukherji Lakkhi Parshuramer Kuthar Bengali [44]
1990
(38th)
  Vijayashanti Vyjayanthi Karthavyam Telugu [45]
1991
(39th)
  Moloya Goswami Ritu Firingoti Assamese [46]
1992
(40th)
  Dimple Kapadia Shanichari Rudaali Hindi [47]
1993
(41st)
  Shobana Ganga / Nagavalli [g] Manichitrathazhu Malayalam [48]
1994
(42nd)
Debashree Roy Dr. Aditi Sen Unishe April Bengali [49]
1995
(43rd)
  Seema Biswas Phoolan Devi Bandit Queen Hindi [50]
1996
(44th)
  Tabu Virender Kaur Maachis [51]
1997
(45th)
    Indrani Haldar Jhinuk Dahan Bengali [52]
Rituparna Sengupta Romita Chaudhury
1998
(46th)
  Shabana Azmi Rambhi [h] Godmother Hindi [54]
1999
(47th)
  Kirron Kher Banalata Bariwali Bengali [55]
2000
(48th)
  Raveena Tandon Durga Saikia Daman: A Victim of Marital Violence Hindi [56]
2001
(49th)
    Tabu Mumtaz Ali Ansari Chandni Bar [57]
Shobana Lakshmi Mitr, My Friend English
2002
(50th)
  Konkona Sen Sharma Meenakshi S. Iyer Mr. and Mrs. Iyer [58]
2003
(51st)
  Meera Jasmine Shahina Paadam Onnu: Oru Vilapam Malayalam [59]
2004
(52nd)
  Tara Hasina Hasina Kannada [60]
2005
(53rd)
  Sarika Shernaz Parzania English [61]
2006
(54th)
  Priyamani Muththazhagu Paruthiveeran Tamil [62]
2007
(55th)
  Umashree Gulabi Gulabi Talkies Kannada [63]
2008
(56th)
  Priyanka Chopra Meghna Mathur Fashion Hindi [64]
2009
(57th)
  Ananya Chatterjee Shikha Sarkar (Srimati Sarkar)[i] Abohomaan Bengali [65]
2010
(58th)
 
 
Mitalee Jagtap Varadkar Shirmi Baboo Band Baaja Marathi [66]
Saranya Ponvannan Veerayi Thenmerku Paruvakaatru Tamil
2011
(59th)
  Vidya Balan Reshma (Silk) [j] The Dirty Picture Hindi [68]
2012
(60th)
  Usha Jadhav Yashoda Dhag Marathi [69]
2013
(61st)
  Geetanjali Thapa Kamala Liar's Dice Hindi [70]
2014
(62nd)
  Kangana Ranaut Rani Mehra Queen [71]
2015
(63rd)
  Tanuja "Tanu" Trivedi,
Kusum "Datto" Sangwan [k]
Tanu Weds Manu Returns [73]
2016
(64th)
  Surabhi Lakshmi Mother [l] Minnaminungu – the Firefly Malayalam [74]
2017
(65th)
 
Sridevi[m] Devki Sabarwal Mom Hindi [76]
2018
(66th)
 
Keerthy Suresh Savitri [n] Mahanati Telugu [78]
2019
(67th)
  Kangana Ranaut Rani Lakshmi Bai[79] Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi Hindi [79]
Jaya Nigam Panga
2020
(68th)
 
Aparna Balamurali Sundari "Bommi" Nedumaaran Soorarai Pottru Tamil [80]
2021
(69th)
 
 
Alia Bhatt Gangubai Kathiawadi Gangubai Kathiawadi Hindi [81]
Kriti Sanon Mimi Rathore Mimi
2022
(70th)
 
 
Nithya Menen Shobana Thiruchitrambalam Tamil [82]
Manasi Parekh Monghi Kutch Express Gujarati

See also

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Notes

edit
  1. ^ Denotes The year in which the film was censored by the Central Board of Film Certification.
  2. ^ Cites the recipient and the role played by them in the film.
  3. ^ Dutt played the role of a woman suffering from multiple personality disorder in the film.[12]
  4. ^ Tagore performed dual roles in the film.[23]
  5. ^ Smita played a single character which had two different names.
  6. ^ Rekha played a single character which had two different names.[33]
  7. ^ Shobana played the role of a woman suffering from multiple personality disorder in the film.
  8. ^ The character played by Shabana Azmi was loosely based on the Porbandar-based lady underworld don Santokben Jadeja.[53]
  9. ^ Chatterjee played a single character which had two different names.
  10. ^ Balan played a single character which had two different names.[67]
  11. ^ Ranaut performed dual roles in the film.[72]
  12. ^ The character remained unnamed throughout the film.
  13. ^ Sridevi was awarded posthumously.[75]
  14. ^ Keerthy Suresh played the role based on the life of Indian actress Savitri in the film.[77]

References

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