The 1st Telangana Gaddar Film Awards were announced by the Telangana Film Development Corporation on 30 May 2025 to honour the best films of 2024 in Telugu cinema. It is the inaugural edition of the newly established awards. These annual awards are presented by the Government of Telangana to recognise excellence in Telugu cinema, as well as lifetime achievements in Indian cinema. The awards were instituted in 2025 in the honor of revolutionary Telugu poet Gaddar.
The Awards ceremony was held at HITEX Exhibition Centre, Hyderabad on 14 June 2025. The event was attended by Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, Minister for Cinematography Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, and producer Dil Raju, chairman of the Telangana Film Development Corporation (TGFDC).
Background The Telangana Gaddar Film Awards (TGFA) are annual awards presented by the Government of Telangana to recognise excellence in Telugu cinema, as well as lifetime achievements in Indian cinema. The TGFDC announced the Telangana Gaddar Film Awards (TGFA) for best picture and six special awards, for the period between June 2014 to December 2024, on 30 May 2025. The awards were instituted in 2025 and honored films which were released from June 2014, after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh.
Jury In April 2025, the Government of Telangana announced a 15-member jury for the year 2024, headed by the veteran actress Jayasudha. The jury received a total of 1,248 nominations across all categories. Of these, 1172 are in individual categories, while 76 entries span feature films, children's films, documentaries, film criticism, books, and other segments.
The members of the jury were as follows:
Jayasudha, chairperson, veteran actress Jeevitha Rajasekhar, director and former actress K. Dasaradh, director V. N. Aditya, director Nandini Reddy, director Siva Nageswara Rao, director L. Srinath, director Uma Maheshwara Rao, director Kasarla Shyam, lyricist Edida Raja, producer Vijay Kumar Rao, exhibitor Goutham, film analyst Venkata Ramana, journalist Lakshmi Narayana, journalist Managing Director, Telangana Film Development Corporation (Member-Convener)
Other key figures include:
B. Narsing Rao: Chairman of the Rules and Guidelines Committee. Dil Raju: Vice-chairman of the Guidelines Committee and Chairman of TGFDC. M. Murali Mohan: Veteran Actor and Senior Jury Member who participated in the selection of the decade awards (2014–2023).
Special awards Six special awards are given honoring eminent film personalities for their outstanding contribution to Indian cinema and Telugu cinema. The winners of the year 2025 are as follows: AwardAwardee(s)NTR National Film Award - Artist only Nandamuri BalakrishnaPaidi Jairaj Film Award - Indian film personality Mani RatnamRaghupathi Venkaiah Film Award - Other than film artist TeluguYandamuri VeerendranathB N Reddy Film Award - Telugu film directorSukumarNagireddy & Chakrapani Film Award - Telugu producerAtluri Purnachandra RaoKantha Rao Award - Telugu artistVijay Deverakonda
Main awards Winners of the awards were announced on 30 May 2025 by the Government of Telangana. The winners were felicitated at the grand ceremony held on 14 June 2025, at HITEX Exhibition Centre, Hyderabad.
Feature Film AwardFilmAwardee(s) First Best Feature Film Kalki 2898 AD Producer: C. Aswini DuttDirector: Nag Ashwin Second Best Feature Film Pottel Producer: Nishank Reddy KuruthiSuresh Kumar SadigeDirector: Sahith Mothkuri Third Best Feature Film Lucky Baskhar Producer: Suryadevara Naga VamsiDirector: Venky Atluri Feature Film on National Integration, Communal Harmony and Social Uplift Committee Kurrollu Producer: Padmaja KonidelaJayalakshmi AdapakaDirector: Yadhu Vamsi Feature Film on Environment, Heritage and History Razakar Producer: Gudur Narayana ReddyDirector: Yata Satyanarayana Dr. M Prabhakar Reddy Best Wholesome Entertainment Film Aay Producer: Bunny VasDirector: Anji K. Maniputhra Best Debut Film of a Director Committee Kurrollu Yadhu Vamsi Best Children's Film 35 Chinna Katha Kaadu Producer: Srujan YaraboluSiddharth RallapalliDirector: Nanda Kishore Emani
Individual and Technical Awards AwardAwardee(s)FilmBest Director Nag AshwinKalki 2898 AD Best Actor Allu Arjun Pushpa 2: The Rule Best Actress Nivetha Thomas 35 Chinna Katha Kaadu Best Supporting Actor S. J. Surya Saripodhaa Sanivaaram Best Supporting Actress Sharanya Pradeep Ambajipeta Marriage BandBest Child Actor Master Arun Dev Pothula35 Chinna Katha KaaduBest Child Actress Baby Harika Mercy KillingBest Comedian SatyaMathu Vadalara 2Vennela KishoreBest Music Director Bheems CeciroleoRazakar Best Lyricist Chandrabose Raju YadavBest Male Playback Singer Sid Sriram Ooru Peru Bhairavakona ()Best Female Playback SingerShreya GhoshalPushpa 2: The Rule ()Best Story Writer Siva PaladuguMusic Shop MurthyBest Screenplay Writer Venky Atluri Lucky BaskharBest CinematographerVishwanath Reddy ChelumallaGaamiBest EditorNaveen NooliLucky BaskarBest AudiographerAravind MenonGaamiBest ChoreographerGanesh AcharyaDevara: Part 1Best Art DirectorNitin Zihani ChoudharyKalki 2898 ADBest Action ChoreographerK. Chandrasekhar RathodGangsterBest Make-up ArtistNalla SeenuRazakarBest Costume DesignerArchana RaoKalki 2898 ADAjay KumarSpecial Jury AwardDulquer SalmaanLucky BhaskarAnanya NagallaPottelSujith and SandeepKAPrashanth Reddy and Rajesh KallepalleRaju YadavSpecial MentionFaria AbdullahMathu Vadalara 2
Criticism It was reported that the jury members of the 2024 awards only partially watched a few films that were nominated for the award, and winners were made according to the "whims and fancies" of the jury members.
A group of social activists have written formal letter to the Telangana Government to withdraw award presented to the film Razakar: The Silent Genocide Of Hyderabad which won in the Best Historical Film category. They argued that the film is "highly polarising" and "propaganda-driven." They criticised the jury's decision, pointing to a specific clause in the Telangana Gaddar Film Awards Regulations, 2024: “The jury must not consider films that disrupt communal harmony and cultural integrity."
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