Silver Lotus Award
| National Film Awards | |
|---|---|
 64th National Film Awards
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| Awarded for | Excellence in cinematic achievements for Indian cinema |
| Location | Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi |
| Country | India |
| Presented by | Directorate of Film Festivals |
| First awarded | 10 October 1954 |
| Last awarded | 7 April 2017 |
| Official website | dff.nic.in |
The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremonies in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorate of Film Festivals since 1973.
Every year, a national panel appointed by the government selects the winning entry, and the award ceremony is held in New Delhi, where the President of India presents the awards. This is followed by the inauguration of the National Film Festival, where the award-winning films are screened for the public. Declared for films produced in the previous year across the country, they hold the distinction of awarding merit to the best of Indian cinema overall, as well as presenting awards for the best films in each region and language of the country. Due to the national scale of the National Film Awards, it is considered the Indian equivalent of the American Academy Awards.
The Awards were first presented in 1954. The Government of India conceived the ceremony to honour films made across India, on a national scale, to encourage the furthering of Indian art and culture. Since 1973, the Indian Directorate of Film Festivals administers the ceremony along with other major film events in India annually. It is the highest award given for films in India.
The National Film Awards are presented in two main categories: Feature Films and Non-Feature Films. The juries are appointed by the Directorate of Film Festivals in India. Neither the Government nor the Directorate have influence over which films are selected for consideration and which films ultimately win awards. There are strict criteria as to whether a film is eligible for consideration by the jury panels. Over 100 films made across the country are entered in each category (Feature and Non-Feature) for the awards and deemed eligible each year.
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