Controversies have been brewing ever since actor Dhanush was announced as the winner of National Award for Best Tamil Film for Raayan (2024) with several audiences disagreeing with the jury's decision to present the award to his film over what they deemed other, more deserving candidates such as Meiyazhagan, Amaran and Maharaja. Besides Raayan, Dhanush's another film Captain Miller (2024) won the Best Feature Film Promoting National, Social and Environmental Values and a Special Mention (Best Actor).

However, many actors and celebrities from the Tamil film industry have backed the jury's decision and praised Dhanush for his work on the film. Dance choreographer Kala, who was part of the panel judging films, noted that he "directed Raayan so beautifully" and described his performance in Captain Miller as extraordinary, saying he had put in immense effort for the role.

Now, noted composer D Imman has now supported Dhanush's victory. In a recent press interaction, he said, "If we are getting a national recognition for our state, we need to see that as a victory for Tamil people. Some may say that the award may be deserving and some may say it is not, but I view it while reflecting on their origin, trajectory in the industry, the efforts they have made to sustain here. All of this will bear fruits to them one day."

He further shared, "If you ask if the award is deserved, everyone will have their own opinions on it, but beyond that, a Tamil person and a film getting it, is a big deal. We should be happy about that."

Recently, Dhanush addressed the controversy during a speech and agreed with the general consensus that other films deserved the award more as compared to the 2024 film. The actor-filmmaker respected the audience's opinion. However, at the same time, Dhanush noted that many of his other films, including Pudhupettai, Raanjhanaa, Vada Chennai, Karnan, and Maryan, also deserved the award at the time of their releases but did not get it.