The Film Critics Guild and GroupM Motion Entertainment, in collaboration with Vistas Media Capital, announced the winners of the Critics’ Choice Awards 2025. The star-studded ceremony, supported by streaming partner Sony Liv, honoured outstanding achievements in feature films, short films, documentaries, and web series from across India. Recognized for its credibility and independence, the Film Critics Guild is India’s largest body of film critics, representing voices from across languages and regions.
Critics’ Choice Awards 2025 full winners list: All We Imagine As Light wins Best Film, Diljit Dosanjh bags Beast Actor award, Poacher dominates web series category
Curated by an esteemed jury comprising of members of the Film Critics Guild, the winners were selected from a diverse pool of nominees spanning multiple languages and platforms. A new category introduced this year, Best Documentary, recognized outstanding feature-length documentary films, with Nocturnes Winning the award for its impactful storytelling.
In the Feature Films category, All We Imagine As Light won the coveted Best Feature Film award for its compelling storytelling and artistic brilliance. Diljit Dosanjh delivered a standout performance, earning the Best Actor award for Amar Singh Chamkila, while Darshana Rajendran’s captivating portrayal in Paradise won her the Best Actress award. Additionally, Ravi Kishan’s memorable role in Laapataa Ladies earned him the Best Supporting Actor award, while Kani Kusruti took home the Best Supporting Actress trophy for her remarkable performance in Girls Will Be Girls.
In the Web Series category, Poacher dominated multiple categories, winning Best Web Series and showcasing the depth of talent in the digital space. co-star Nimisha Sajayan was awarded Best Actress for Poacher and a second award for the night, this time for Barun Sobti won Best Actor for the delightful Raat Jawaan Hai.
In the Short Films category, Obur emerged as the standout winner, securing Best Short Film along with multiple other accolades. Harish Khanna was awarded Best Actor for Jal Tu Jalaal Tu, while Jyoti Dogra won Best Actress for Taak (Tracker), reflecting the depth of talent in this category.
The Extraordinary Contribution to Cinema Award was presented to the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), recognising their pivotal role in advocating for gender equality and safer workspaces in the Malayalam film industry. The honour highlights the commitment of the Critics’ Choice Awards to celebrating voices that drive meaningful change in cinema.
Spotlighting outstanding achievements across diverse cinematic categories, the Critics’ Choice Awards (CCA) continue to set a benchmark in recognising excellence in Indian cinema. The awards are curated by 59 esteemed film critics from the Film Critics Guild.This year’s nominations brought together an incredible range of talent, transcending language and platform boundaries to celebrate the Indian entertainment industry’s finest.
Amidst stiff competition, the Critics’ Choice Awards 2025 jury meticulously evaluated the nominations, ensuring that the most exceptional works of Indian cinema received their due recognition.
Accepting the award for Best Actor in a Feature Film for Amar Singh Chamkila, Diljit Dosanjh expressed his heartfelt gratitude, stating, “Thank you to the Film Critics Guild for this award, bohotbohot shukriya for considering me worthy of this honor. I dedicate this award to Amar Singh Chamkila and to Imtiaz Sir, who brought this beautiful film to life. I just had the chance to be a part of it—it was entirely Imtiaz Sir’s hard work. A big thank you to the entire cast and crew of the film.”
Receiving the award for Best Director in a Feature Film for All We Imagine As Light, Payal Kapadia expressed her deep appreciation for the recognition, stating, “I am deeply honoured and happy to be recognised by the Critics’ Choice Awards. This year has been filled with incredible films, and it means so much to be among such inspiring filmmakers. The awards hold a special place in my heart, as so many critics have been wonderfully supportive of All We Imagine As Light. Thank you for supporting our film every step of the way.”
Richie Mehta, awarded Best Director and Best Series for Poacher, reflected on the recognition, saying, “It’s an honour to have our series ‘Poacher’ be awarded by the critics, as it was a series made with immense love and passion, by so many, to honour the guardians of all species, who themselves are never recognised. I hope they feel the love today, as our story is merely a reflection of their extraordinary work, further reinforced by this recognition.”
Nimisha Sajayan, named Best Actress in a Series for Poacher, shared her gratitude, stating, “Absolutely thrilled and honoured to receive this award and extremely grateful to all the critics and the jury. ‘Poacher’ changed me as an artiste and as a person in many ways and any appreciation for Mala (her character’s name) is special for me. It has been a very humbling experience. Thank you.”
Jyoti Dogra, who won Best Actress in a Short Film for Taak, said, “A big thank you to all the critics for watching our film and for this award. A special thanks to Udit Khurana, directorof ‘Taak’, forgiving me space and time to enter the world of Shalini. For someone who has been mostly doing stage work past 20 years this recognition is unexpected I feel a robust critics community is essential to any art form. A group of people dedicating their energies to building aconversation around new and old works, creating inclusive platforms for all kinds of stories and ways of telling them is valuable both for the makers and the audience. Thank you so much Critics’ Choice Awards.”
Dibyendu Bhattacharya, recognised as Best Supporting Actor in a Series for Poacher, acknowledged the honour, saying, “Awards are always a validation of your craft and when you get it from the top critics of India then it’s huge and feels extra special. Thank you, Critics’ Choice Awards, for acknowledging my work in ‘Poacher’. This award will surely motivate me to further work hard in this Industry.”
Anirban Dutta, filmmaker of ‘Nocturnes’, expressed his gratitude on winning Best Documentary, saying, “We are very moved that the Critics’ Choice Awards has chosen ‘Nocturnes’ for this honour. This film is deeply special to (co-director) Anupama and me, made at a time when we felt suffocated by urban life in Delhi—its pollution, its heat—and longed to reconnect with nature and rediscover childlike wonder. We created it with love, especially for young people and children, hoping they’d step away from their devices and appreciate the simple beauty of trees, ants, and butterflies around them. This recognition gives us hope that ‘Nocturnes’, already released in 15 U.S. cities and the UK, will now find its place in Indian cinema halls, an achievement we deeply cherish. We truly appreciate the jury for recognising our work.”
Sucharita Tyagi, Vice Chairperson of the Film Critics Guild, highlighted the significance of film criticism and the Critics’ Choice Awards, stating, “Film criticism is an important and integral facet of journalism, and the Film Critics Guild aims to strengthen and nurture this community of cultural commentators who believe in the power of the written word. The Critics’ Choice Awards are about encouraging conversation between critics and those who tell the stories we watch and comment on. With these awards, and now with our brand-new review aggregator website, fcgreviews.com, we hope to stay connected not just with each other, but also with an audience that looks to us.”
Ashwin Padmanabhan, Chief Operating Officer, GroupM South Asia, said, “At GroupM, we believe in the power of storytelling to inspire, challenge, and connect people. Stories spark conversations, shape perspectives, and leave a lasting impact. Above all, we champion inclusive storytelling—celebrating diverse voices that push creative boundaries. In partnership with the Film Critics Guild and Vistas Media Capital, we proudly honor storytellers across feature films, short films, documentaries, and web series from all over India. These awards have become a symbol of artistic excellence, spotlighting narratives that transcend borders. As we look ahead, we aim to amplify this platform—elevating fresh talent, embracing new voices, and ensuring powerful stories continue to captivate audiences and shape the industry.”
Abhayanand Singh, CEO and Co-Founder, Vistas.Media, shared, “Vistas Media congratulates all the winners of the 7th edition of Critics’ Choice Awards. We also congratulate the nominees as this was a very competitive year with a lot of exceptional talent that presented us with amazing stories.”
Notable winners for the 7th Edition of Critics’ Choice Awards 2025
Short Film Category:
Best Short Film:
Obur
Best Director:
Faraz Ali for Obur
Best Actor:
Harish Khanna for Jal Tu Jalaal Tu
Best Actress:
Jyoti Dogra for Taak (Tracker)
Best Writing:
Faraz Ali for Obur
Best Cinematography:
Anand Bansal for Obur
Documentary Category:
Best Documentary:
Nocturnes
Web Series Category:
Best Web Series:
Poacher
Best Director:
Richie Mehta for Poacher
Best Actor:
Barun Sobti for Raat Jawaan Hai
Best Actress:
Nimisha Sajayan for Poacher
Best Supporting Actor:
Dibyendu Bhattacharya for Poacher
Best Supporting Actress:
Kani Kusruti for Poacher
Best Writing:
Richie Mehta, Gopan Chidambaran, SuprotimSengupta, Amrita Bagchi for Poacher
Feature Film Category:
Best Film:
All We Imagine As Light
Best Director:
Payal Kapadia for All We Imagine As Light
Best Actor:
Diljit Dosanjh for Amar Singh Chamkila
Best Actress:
Darshana Rajendran for Paradise
Best Supporting Actor:
Ravi Kishan for Laapataa Ladies
Best Supporting Actress:
Kani Kusruti for Girls Will Be Girls
Best Writing:
Anand Ekarshi for Aattam
Best Cinematography:
Ranabir Das for All We Imagine As Light
Best Editing:
Shivkumar V. Panicker for Kill
Gender Sensitivity Award:
Girls Will Be Girls
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