53rd Kerala State Film Awards announced; Here's the full list of winners

The 53rd Kerala State Film Awards were announced on Friday. Saji Cherian, the Minister of Cultural Affairs, announced the winners in a press meet held in Thiruvananthapuram. 154 films were submitted for the competition, out of which 30 were selected for the final round. Bengali filmmaker Gautham Ghose headed the jury, which also includes director KM Madhusudhanan, art director Nemom Pushparaj, cinematographer-director Hari Nair, actor Gauthami, sound designer D Yuvaraj and playback singer Jensy Gregory.

While Mammootty bagged his sixth Best Actor (Male) award for Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam, Vincy Aloshious won the Best Actor (Female) award for her performance in Rekha. Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam was chosen as the Best Film, and Mahesh Narayanan got selected as the Best Director

Here's the full list of winners:

Best Film – Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam

Best Second Film – Adithattu 

Best Film with Popular Appeal and Aesthetic Value – Nna Thaan Case Kodu

Best Actor (Male) – Mammootty (Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam)

Best Actor (Female) – Vincy Aloshious (Rekha)

Best Director – Mahesh Narayanan (Ariyippu)

Special Jury Award (Acting) – Kunchacko Boban (Nna Thaan Case Kodu), Alencier Ley Lopez (Appan)

Special Award in any Category for Women/ Transgender  –  Shruthi Sharanyam

Special Jury Mention (Direction)  –  Biswasjith S, Rarish (Vettappattikalum Oattakkarum) 

Best Story – Kamal KM (Pada)

Best Screenplay (Original) – Ratheesh Balakrishnan Poduval (Nna Thaan Case Kodu)

Best Screenplay (Adapted) – Rajesh Kumar R (Oru Thekkan Thallu Case)

Best Debutant Director – Shahi Kabir (Ela Veezha Poonchira)

Best Character Actor (Male) – PP Kunhikrishnan (Nna Thaan Case Kodu)

Best Character Actor (Female) – Devi Varma (Saudi Vellakka)

Best Editor – Nishad Yousef (Thallumaala)

Best Cinematography – Manesh Madhavan (Ela Veezha Poonchira), Chandru Selvaraj (Vazhakk)

Best Music Composer  – M Jayachandran (Pathonpathaam Noottaandu, Ayisha)

Best Background Music – Dawn Vincent (Nna Thaan Case Kodu)

Best Singer (Male) - Kapil Kapilan

Best Playback Singer (Female) – Mridula Warrier (Mayilpeeli Ilakunnu, Pathonpathaam Noottandu)

Best Lyrics – Rafeeq Ahammed ('Thiramalayaan Nee', Viddikalude Maash)

Best Children’s Film – Pallotty 90s Kids

Best Child Artist (Male) – Master Da Vinci (Pallotty 90s Kids)

Best Child Artist (Female) – Thanmaya Sol (Vazhakk)

Best Sound Designing – Ajayan Adat (Ela Veezha Poonchira)

Best Sound Mixing  – Vipin Nair (Nna Thaan Case Kodu)

Best Sync Sound – Vaishak PV (Ariyippu)

Best Laboratory/ Colourist - Robert Lang CSI / After Studios (Ela Veezha Poonchira), Rangarajan / iGene Di and VFX (Vazhakk)

Best Dubbing Artist (Male) – Shobi Thilakan (Pathonpatham Noottandu)

Best Dubbing Artist (Female) – Pauly Valsan (Saudi Vellakka)

Best Choreography – Shobi Paulraj (Thallumaala)

Best Makeup – Ronex Xavier (Bheeshma Parvam)

Best Costume – Manjusha Radhakrishnan (Saudi Vellakka)

Best Visual Effects - Anish D and Sumesh Gopal (Vazhakk)

Best Art Direction – Jothish Shankar (Nna Thaan Case Kodu)