Newton director Amit V Masurkar hopes the Best Hindi Film National Award for his film opens up more doors for relevant political cinema in India.
The 65th National Film Awards were announced on Friday.
Thanking the jury for awarding Newton, Masurkar said in a statement: "I hope this award and the film's commercial success creates a bigger space for relevant political cinema. This wouldn't have been possible without an incredible cast, crew, and the love and support from the people of Chhattisgarh where we shot the film."
The Rajkummar Rao-starrer, which tells the story of a government clerk who tries to run a free and fair election in a conflict area in central India, was also selected as India's entry for the 90th Academy Awards.
Pankaj Tripathi, who played the role of a CRPF officer in the film, won a Special Mention at the National Film Awards for his performance.