It’s that time of the year when Bollywood gears up to celebrate the finest cinematic achievements at one of the most prestigious awards ceremonies in India – the Filmfare Awards. The Filmfare Awards are presented annually by The Times Group to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in the film industry of India. The Filmfare ceremony is one of the oldest film events in India. The awards were first introduced in 1954. Hindi cinema has given some exceptional magical moments over the years that will be cherished and remembered for a lifetime. Filmfare continues to contribute to this legacy by honouring the stalwarts who are redefining Hindi cinema. For decades, the elegant and prestigious Black Lady has been the epitome of credibility and success in the world of Indian cinema.
Get your tickets for the 68th Hyundai Filmfare Awards 2023 with Maharashtra Tourism here!
The 68th Hyundai Filmfare Awards 2023 with Maharashtra Tourism will be held on April 27, 2023, at the Jio World Conventional Centre in Mumbai. The event promises to be a star-studded celebration of the best Hindi cinema has to offer in 2022. As we await the upcoming Filmfare Awards take a look at a few facts related to the long-running, prestigious ceremony through the decades.
The first Filmfare Award ceremony was held on March 21st, 1954. One of Hollywood’s most popular stars, Gregory Peck, was invited as the guest of honour. The event had been organised at Metro Theatre in Mumbai. However, due to a flight delay from Colombo, he could not make it to the event. But, he later attended the banquet that was arranged at the Willingdon Sports Club.
Filmfare was not the first name that had come up for the Awards. It was earlier supposed to be called, The Clares Awards after the Times of India film critic – Clare Mendonca. She has been called “One of the earliest film journalists in India”. Only 5 awards were presented in the first ceremony in 1954. The categories were – Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actor (Female), and Best Music Director.
Do Bigha Zameen was the first movie to win Filmfare Award For Best Film. Bimal Roy won the first Filmfare Award For Best Director, for the film Do Bigha Zameen. Dilip Kumar was the first actor to be honoured with Filmfare Award For Best Actor, for his performance in Daag. Meena Kumari won the first Filmfare Award For Best Actress, for the movie Baiju Bawra. Naushad was the first music director to win Filmfare Award For Best Music Director, for Baiju Bawra.
The trophies, now known as The Black Lady are made of bronze and hence are quite heavy. During the 25th year of Filmfare Awards, the statue was made of silver. During the 50th year of its celebration, the trophy was made of gold. A few more changes have been made to the trophy to give it a 3D look and feel.
Vyjayanthimala did not accept the Filmfare award for Best Supporting Actress for Devdas. This was because she believed that she was the lead actress in the film and not Suchitra Sen.
Surprisingly, the biggest blockbuster hit in the history of Bollywood – Sholay, won only one Filmfare Award in 1975 and that too for Best Editing.
In 1969, Sunil Dutt organised a party for Dilip Kumar, when the latter beat him for Filmfare Best Actor Award. This started the trend of post-award parties in Bollywood.
The award for Best Choreography was instituted only in 1988. Saroj Khan won it for Madhuri’s sizzling Ek Do Teen… from Tezaab.
As of now, Zoya Akhtar’s Gully Boy holds the record of winning the highest number of Filmfare Awards. It received 13 awards at the 65th Filmfare Awards, breaking the record of Black (11). Both Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and Devdas are next in line, as they won 10 awards each in 1996 and 2003 respectively.
The Filmfare Awards winners of 1985 were announced in 1986, and the ceremony was scheduled to be held at the end of the year. However, it was finally postponed to the next year, as Bollywood (called ‘Bombay Film Industry’ at that time) went on a strike against the Government of Maharashtra in 1986. For obvious reasons, the Filmfare awards were not given for 1986 and 1987.
In 1958, Lata was nominated for the Best Playback Female Singer category at the Filmfare Awards. She later won the award, which was for her song Aaja Re Pardesi from the film Madhumati. But she refused to accept the trophy, because it was in the shape of a lady who had no clothes on it. Later, the organisers wrapped up the award before presenting it to her.
Meena Kumari achieved an unusual feat by garnering all of the nominations for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female) in 1963 with no other actress being nominated (3 nominations that year). No other actress has equaled this record.
Amitabh Bachchan holds a unique record of receiving nominations for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male) in 6 decades (1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s) and winning an award in 4 decades.
Irrfan Khan is the only actor to receive the Filmfare award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male) posthumously in the year 2021 for the film Angrezi Medium.
This year, the Filmfare Awards promises you to be filled with entertainment and other fun filled endless moments. The 68th Hyundai Filmfare Awards 2023 with Maharashtra Tourism will be held on April 27, 2023, at the Jio World Conventional Centre in Mumbai. Salman Khan will host the 68th Hyundai Filmfare Awards 2023 with Maharashtra Tourism for the very first time, alongside co-host Maniesh Paul and Ayushmann Khurrana. Industry stalwarts such as Vicky Kaushal, Tiger Shroff, Janhvi Kapoor, Govinda and Jacqueline Fernandez are all ready to set the stage on fire with their breathtaking performances. This glamorous extravaganza will be broadcast on Colors the next day, April 28, 2023, at 9 PM. Hyundai Motor India, as the Title Partner, will be an integral part of the celebration, along with Maharashtra Tourism as the Destination Partner. Fans can also catch exclusive coverage, behind-the-scenes moments, and more on Filmfare’s website and social media handles.