Punjabi superstar Diljit Dosanjh added another accolade to his name at the Critics' Choice Awards 2025, winning Best Actor for his role in Amar Singh Chamkila. The event, hosted by the Film Critics Guild and GroupM Motion Entertainment, celebrated excellence in Indian cinema, web series, and short films.
- YouTubewww.youtube.com
Major wins in feature films
The highly acclaimed All We Imagine As Light secured Best Feature Film, recognised for its powerful storytelling. Director Payal Kapadia also took home Best Director for the same film, while its cinematography by Ranabir Das was awarded Best Cinematography. Anand Ekarshi’s screenplay for Aattam was honoured with Best Writing, and Shivkumar V. Panicker received Best Editing for Kill.
- YouTubeyoutu.be
Diljit Dosanjh, accepting his Best Actor award for Amar Singh Chamkila, expressed his gratitude: “Thank you to the Film Critics Guild for this honour. This award belongs to Amar Singh Chamkila, to Imtiaz Sir for his vision, and to the entire team who brought this story to life.” Darshana Rajendran’s gripping performance in Paradise earned her the Best Actress award.
Ravi Kishan’s compelling role in Laapataa Ladies won him Best Supporting Actor, while Kani Kusruti’s performance in Girls Will Be Girls earned her Best Supporting Actress.
Web series that took the spotlight
In the digital space, Poacher emerged as the top winner, securing Best Web Series. The show’s lead, Nimisha Sajayan, won Best Actress, while Barun Sobti was awarded Best Actor for Raat Jawaan Hai. The show also saw Dibyendu Bhattacharya take Best Supporting Actor, and Kani Kusruti was named Best Supporting Actress. Poacher also won Best Writing, credited to Richie Mehta, Gopan Chidambaran, Suprotim Sengupta, and Amrita Bagchi.
Short films and documentary wins
The short film Obur made a strong impact, winning Best Short Film, Best Director for Faraz Ali, Best Writing for Faraz Ali, and Best Cinematography for Anand Bansal. Harish Khanna took Best Actor for Jal Tu Jalaal Tu, while Jyoti Dogra won Best Actress for Taak (Tracker).
In the documentary category, Nocturnes was recognised as Best Documentary for its compelling narrative and cinematic impact.
A night of celebration
The Critics' Choice Awards once again highlighted the best in Indian entertainment, recognising talent across multiple languages and formats. With Diljit Dosanjh’s big win and All We Imagine As Light leading the film category, the evening reinforced the power of strong storytelling in cinema as well as in digital content.