Rahul Dholakia questioned the relocation of the National Film Awards ceremony from Delhi to Gujarat.
Dholakia suggested the awards should have moved to major cinema hubs like Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, or Hyderabad.
The ceremony moves out of Delhi for the first time in its 72-year history since its inception in 1954.
The National Film Awards is set to leave New Delhi for the first time in its 72-year history. The 72nd edition of the awards is scheduled to be held at Ekta Nagar in Gujarat’s Narmada district on September 22.
Filmmaker Rahul Dholakia has questioned the decision to move the National Film Awards ceremony from Delhi to Gujarat. He argued that if the government wanted to break with tradition, it should have picked a place with a deeper link to Indian cinema.
Rahul Dholakia questions National Awards ceremony shift to Gujarat
A day after government officials announced the shift, Dholakia wrote on his X handle on Tuesday morning: “I have no particular love lost for Delhi hosting the National Film Awards, but I question the shift to Gujarat. Why Gujarat?”
He added: “When you are breaking the tradition of presenting the award in another city/state, then why not give that honour to a state that has contributed to cinema? Like Maharashtra or Kerala or Tamil Nadu. Even a city like Hyderabad (sic)”
His remarks put the focus on why Gujarat was chosen over long-established film centres as the awards leave Delhi for the first time.
Dholakia himself is a National Film Awardee. He received the Best Director honour for Parzania in 2007, a film set against the backdrop of the 2002 Gujarat riots.
His 2017 film Raees, starring Shah Rukh Khan, was set in Gujarat.
Awards move details
The first National Awards in 1954 were held in Delhi’s Vigyan Bhawan, which has hosted most of the award ceremonies since.
Kevadia now carries the name Ekta Nagar. The town hosts the 597-foot Statue of Unity, recognized globally as the tallest statue. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the monument in 2018 to honour India's first Home Minister and freedom fighter Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
President Droupadi Murmu will present the honours at the 72nd National Film Awards 2024 ceremony in Kevadia on September 22.
The Best Actor honour will be awarded to Mammootty and Kartik Aaryan for Bramayugam and Chandu Champion.
Aditya Suhas Jambhale’s political action thriller Article 370 won the Best Feature Film, while the film's lead star Yami Gautam won the Best Actress.
