National Film Awards: Sushant Singh's 'Chhichhore' awarded as the best Hindi feature film

Sushant Singh Rajput and Shraddha Kapoor starrer Chhichhore on Monday was awarded as the best Hindi feature film at the 67th National Film Awards. The ceremony was delayed due to the Coronavirus pandemic and the winners were announced in a press conference at the National Media Centre, New Delhi, on March 22.

Chhichhore, also starring Tahir Raj Bhasin, Prateik Babbar, Naveen Polishetty, Tushar Pandey, and Saharsh Kumar Shukla, chronicles the "before and after" of seven friends across two timelines. The college buddy-drama marked Rajput's last big-screen appearance as Anirudh ''Anni'' Pathak.

Inspired by Tiwari's years at IIT-Bombay, Chhichhore garnered immense acclaim and worked wonders at the box office. It was also one of Rajput's most celebrated performances, as a sincere college student and then an understanding father to a son who tries to commit suicide under pressure to score good grades.

'Chhichhore' awarded as the best Hindi feature film. #NationalFilmAwards2019 pic.twitter.com/8bEaA1BjG5

— ANI (@ANI)

Chhichhore, was also screened as part of the Indian Panaroma section at the 51st International Film Festival of India (IFFI).

Talking about the title, Tiwari in an interview with PTI said, "Chhichhore' defines beautifully what the film is trying to say. We are all driven by labels given to us by society. Once you give someone a label, you stop looking at their goodness. 'He's short-tempered, he's alcoholic.' But even they have qualities. This is what the film is trying to do - the Chhichhore also has a lot of goodness. Just because a label of 'Chhichhore' or 'loser' has been given doesn't mean they can't be anything else."

Republic World's Review of Chhichhore

When Republic TV reviewed the film, the critic said, "A must watch! A movie that highlights failure, a movie that tells you that there should be a plan even for defeat/non-success. An amalgamation of several emotions, this movie can't be missed. A tear and a laugh is for sure as you leave the theatre. 'Koshish, aur kar bhi kya sakte hain', a dialogue that breaks the movie into intermission is the soul of Nitish Tiwari directorial. A touching, feel-good drama that is worth a watch" 

(With PTI inputs)