New Delhi . The 72nd National Film Awards ceremony was organized on Tuesday in Ekta Nagar, Gujarat. Artists, directors and technical talents who have made significant contributions to Indian cinema for the year 2024 were honored in this ceremony. President Draupadi Murmu presented awards to the winners of various categories.

During the ceremony, the President also spoke on the role of Indian cinema and the social responsibility of film artists. He appealed to popular film stars to avoid endorsing such products which could be harmful to people's health.

President Murmu said that the influence of popular artists is especially high on children and youth. When successful artists promote a healthy and disciplined lifestyle, a large number of youth take inspiration from them. Seeing this effect, he urged the film stars to stay away from advertising and promotion of products harmful to health.

He said that the true star is the one who works to spread light in the society and not promote darkness. The President, however, did not name any particular artist or brand in his address. His appeal was to the entire film industry to use their influence responsibly.

This statement of the President came at a time when there has been discussion at the public and regulatory level regarding health products in celebrity advertisements. Questions have also been raised regarding surrogate advertisements to some film artists. In the ceremony, instead of limiting this topic to any particular person, it was kept as a collective responsibility of the film industry.

The President also stressed the need to increase the participation of women in the juries of the National Film Awards. He said that participation of women should be ensured in every regional jury. According to her, by including women's perspective in the decision process, it can be made more comprehensive.

He also appealed to the film industry to pay attention to the respect and social security of the people working behind the scenes. It was said that the contribution of small artistes, assistants, technicians and other employees should be given importance, describing them as an important part of the creative economy of cinema.

'Article 370' was chosen as the Best Feature Film in the major categories of the awards. Yami Gautam received the Best Actress award for her performance in the film. With this honour, the ceremony was special for both the film and Yami Gautam.

Mammootty and Kartik Aryan were honored in the Best Actor category. Mammootty received this award for his performance in 'Brahmayugam' and Kartik Aryan for his performance in 'Chandu Champion'.

Veteran actor Anant Nag was honored with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for the year 2024 at the ceremony. He was given this prestigious honor for his long contribution to Indian cinema.

The 72nd National Film Awards ceremony ended with the national anthem 'Vande Mataram' followed by the national anthem 'Jana Gana Mana'. Along with the awards, the social responsibilities associated with cinema and the role of people who contribute behind the scenes to the industry were also a major part of the discussion.