Malayalam cinema veteran Mohanlal was awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest honour in Indian cinema, at the 71st National Film Awards on Tuesday evening at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. Mohanlal is 65 years old when he received the award, which makes him the youngest to get it and the second Keralite to be given the distinction, after director Adoor Gopalakrishnan, who received it in 2004.
An emotional Mohanlal, while accepting the award, said,
As the voice of the Malayalam film industry, I am greatly obliged to be the youngest to be honored and just the second from the state ever to have received this national award. This achievement is not my own, it is of the entire Malayalam film fraternity.
A special tribute movie was shown during the ceremony, detailing his long and successful career spanning over four decades and over 350 films in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, and Kannada cinema. Mohanlal spoke of the honour, saying,
I see this award as a group tribute to our industry, its legacy, creativity, and resilience. I believe this is destiny’s hand in enabling me to receive this award on behalf of all the people who have contributed to Malayalam cinema.
Making his debut in 1978 with Thiranottam, Mohanlal became popular in the 1980s and 1990s with movies such as Kireedam, Bharatham, Vanaprastham, Rajavinte Makan, Kilukkam, Narasimham, and Spadikam. He also contributed considerably to Tamil and Hindi cinema, such as Iruvar (1997) and Company (2002). With five National Film Awards and nine Kerala State Film Awards, he is also renowned for his philanthropic activities.
The ceremony also honored Shah Rukh Khan and Vikrant Massey as co-winners of the Best Actor award, and Rani Mukerji, who was awarded Best Actress for Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway. President Droupadi Murmu handed out the awards at a grand ceremony in the presence of some of the biggest film stars.
Here comes the most awaited moment of National Awards Ceremony.#Mohanlal with the highest Cinematic recognition – The #DadasahebPhalke Lifetime Achievement Award.
— What The Fuss (@WhatTheFuss_) September 23, 2025
Entire audience standing and applauding before the legend.@Mohanlal pic.twitter.com/cOJrwIoozu
