Earlier today (August 24), the winners of the 69th edition of the National Film Awards were announced from the National Media Centre in New Delhi. The heads of the various juries, appointed by the government of India, were present to read out the list of winners in their respective categories. In the feature films category, R Madhavan’s Rocketry-The Nambi Effect won the Best Feature Film award. Whereas, in the regional language (Hindi) category, Shoojit Sircar’s Sardar Udham won the Best Hindi Film (Feature) award at the 69th National Film Awards.
Shoojit Sircar reacts to winning the National Film Award for Sardar Udham
The biographical historical drama film stars Vicky Kaushal in the lead role. Pinkvilla got in touch with the director of this film and learned how he was feeling about getting this national recognition.
Evidently, Shoojit was on cloud nine and thanked the jury for bestowing the award on his film. This is what he said during an exclusive telephonic interview with Pinkvilla.
“It’s a national recognition and you feel quite proud. Somewhere I think while we were making this film and the kind of efforts that we have put in terms of making it as realistic as possible to create the period and the time and also present a revolutionary the way a revolutionary should be. So, I think when your vision is accepted, respected, loved, and also recognized and national, I’m just thankful to the jury that they thought this film deserves it. So, thank you and I’m happy,” Shoojit shared.
The role was originally written for the late actor Irrfan Khan
Only a few people know that Shoojit Sircar had originally written the role for the late Indian actor Irrfan Khan. But after his untimely demise, the titular role was given to Vicky. When asked if he misses Irrfan on this big day, Shoojit said, “I miss him every day and just not today. I miss him every day.”
About Sardar Udham
Set in India and England, the movie is based on the life of Sardar Udham Singh, a freedom fighter from Punjab who assassinated Michael O’Dwyer in London to avenge the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar. The movie was released on October 16, 2021, on the OTT platform Amazon Prime Video.
