62nd Maharashtra State Film Awards: Chhabila Wins Best Film, Rani Mukerji Honoured

Add as a preferred source on Google

The 62nd Maharashtra State Film Awards were held on Wednesday, 9 September 2026, at Ravindra Natya Mandir in Prabhadevi, Mumbai, with the Marathi film "Chhabila" taking home the top honour of Best Film. "Gharat Ganpati" placed second and "Nach Ga Ghuma" came in third in the same category. The ceremony, organised by Maharashtra's Cultural Affairs Department along with the Maharashtra Film, Theatre and Cultural Development Corporation, also handed out its most prestigious lifetime and special contribution honours.

Photo Credit: X: @CMOMaharashtra

Winners At A Glance

• Best Film: Chhabila
• Second Best Film: Gharat Ganpati
• Third Best Film: Nach Ga Ghuma
• Chitrapati V. Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award: Pt. Hridaynath Mangeshkar
• Chitrapati V. Shantaram Special Contribution Award: Prasad Oak
• Raj Kapoor Lifetime Achievement Award: Salim Khan (accepted by wife Helen)
• Raj Kapoor Special Contribution Award: Rani Mukerji

Lifetime Achievement And Special Honours

Veteran composer and singer Pt. Hridaynath Mangeshkar received the Chitrapati V. Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award, recognising his decades of contribution to Indian music. Actor-director Prasad Oak was given the Chitrapati V. Shantaram Special Contribution Award. Veteran screenwriter and producer Salim Khan was honoured with the Raj Kapoor Lifetime Achievement Award, which his wife Helen accepted on his behalf since he could not attend.

Actor Rani Mukerji received the Raj Kapoor Special Contribution Award, presented to her by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The award recognised her long association with Mumbai and her contribution to Indian cinema more broadly, even though her own body of work sits largely outside Marathi film. Cultural Affairs Minister Ashish Shelar attended the ceremony along with several other figures from the state's film fraternity.

What The Winners Said

Accepting her award, Rani Mukerji spoke about what the city and the industry have meant to her personally, describing cinema as something closer to feeling than profession and crediting Mumbai with giving her an identity and a career. She dedicated the honour to Maharashtra's artists, technicians and generations of storytellers who have shaped the state's film culture, tying her own recognition back to the wider industry the awards exist to celebrate.

Beyond The Trophies

Speaking at the event, Chief Minister Fadnavis used the occasion to announce plans for expanding infrastructure around Marathi cinema, including more screens dedicated to Marathi films across the state and preparations for new film city projects in Ramtek and Nashik. Managing Director of the Corporation, Swati Mhase-Patil, said the awards exist to remember the contribution of figures who have shaped Maharashtra's film and cultural tradition, while also inspiring newer generations of artists coming into the industry. Awards for various technical categories, including cinematography, editing and sound, were also presented as part of the ceremony, continuing a format the state has followed since the awards began in 1962.