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{{Short description|Indian ceremony celebrating cinema of 1953}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2016}}
{{Infobox film awards
| number = 1
| award = National Film Awards
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| awarded_for = Best of Indian cinema in 1953
| award_org = [[Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India)|Ministry of Information and Broadcasting]]
| presenting_org = [[Rajendra Prasad]]<br/>{{small|([[President of India]])}}
| announced_date =
| presented_date = {{Start date|df=yes|1954|10|10}}
| site = [[Vigyan Bhavan]], New Delhi
| host =
| website = [http://dff.nic.in/ dff.nic.in]
| lifetime_achievement =
| best_feature = ''[[Shyamchi Aai (film)|Shyamchi Aai]]''
| best_non_feature =
| most_wins =
| next = 2nd
}}

The '''1st [[National Film Awards]]''', presented by [[Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India)|Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India]] to felicitate the best of [[Cinema of India|Indian Cinema]] censored in the year 1953.<ref name="1staward">{{cite web|url=http://dff.nic.in/images/Documents/113_1stNfacatalogue.pdf|title=1st National Film Awards|publisher=Directorate of Film Festivals|access-date=2 September 2020|archive-date=25 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200725173137/http://dff.nic.in/images/Documents/113_1stNfacatalogue.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Ceremony took place at [[Vigyan Bhavan]], New Delhi on 10 October 1954 and awards were given by then President of India, Dr [[Rajendra Prasad]].

Instituted as '''State Awards for Films''', which over the years known as '''National Film Awards''', in its first year, were given in three different categories to honour the films at national level. Films made in all Indian languages were considered for the award. Awards were instituted, in order to encourage the production of the films of a high aesthetic and technical standard and educational and culture value.

Awards were categorised into three categories; Feature films, Documentaries and Children's films, where gold medal and Certificate of Merit was awarded in each category. For first two categories, Gold Medal was awarded as President's Gold Medal whereas for Children's films, it was awarded as Prime Minister's gold medal. For 1st National Film Awards, Prime Minister's Gold Medal Award for Children's film, though declared as one of the awards, was not given to any film as no film was found to be suitable.

''[[Shyamchi Aai (film)|Shyamchi Aai]]'', a [[Marathi cinema|Marathi film]] received an honour to be the first Indian film to receive [[National Film Award for Best Feature Film|President's gold medal for the All India Best Feature Film]], which now better known as National Film Award for Best Feature Film.<ref name="1staward" /><ref>{{cite web|title=Shyamchi Aai on Upperstall.com|url=http://www.upperstall.com/films/1953/shyamchi-aai|work=Upperstall.com|access-date=10 September 2011|archive-date=5 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110905174125/http://www.upperstall.com/films/1953/shyamchi-aai|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=General Knowledge Digest 2010|publisher=[[Tata McGraw-Hill]]|isbn=978-0-07-069939-7|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RyLmXWTKHXgC&pg=SA6-PA114| access-date=10 September 2011 }}</ref>

== Background ==

[[Image:Raja Harishchandra.jpg|thumb|180px|A scene from ''Raja Harishchandra'' – First Indian film]]
India had its first full-length motion picture when Dhundiraj Govind Phalke, popularly known as [[Dadasaheb Phalke]] directed and produced a mythological [[silent film]] – ''[[Raja Harishchandra]]'', released on 3 May 1913, at [[Coronation Cinema]], [[Mumbai]].<ref name="1staward" /><ref name="nytimesreview">{{cite news|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/249829/Raja-Harishchandra/overview|title=Raja Harishchandra review|access-date=21 August 2011|archive-date=5 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105210228/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/249829/Raja-Harishchandra/overview|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=[[The New York Times]]|publisher=[[Baseline (database)|Baseline]] & [[All Movie Guide]]|author=Jonathan Crow|date=2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> This is marked as the beginning of the [[Cinema of India|Indian film industry]]. Though film had female characters, Phalke could not get any female to play these roles. All the female characters were also played by male artists.
[[Image:Newpaper advertisement for Alam Ara, 1931.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Newspaper advertisement for ''Alam Ara'' – First Indian Talkie]]

The release in 1931 of the first Indian talkie – ''[[Alam Ara]]'', produced by the Imperial Film Company, marked as beginning of new era in Indian film industry. The film was released at the Majestic Cinema in Mumbai on 14 March 1931.<ref name="alamara">{{cite web|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20060326/spectrum/main1.htm|title=75 years of cinema|access-date=21 August 2011|work=The Tribune |location=India| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110717102107/http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20060326/spectrum/main1.htm| archive-date= 17 July 2011 | url-status= live}}</ref> Over the period, India produced many films and eventually became one of the largest film industries along with Hollywood and [[Cinema of China|Chinese cinema]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-01-10/india/28358616_1_film-industry-chinese-film-chinese-movie|title=Chinese film industry races close to Bollywood|access-date=10 January 2011|date=10 January 2011|archive-date=5 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105004734/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-01-10/india/28358616_1_film-industry-chinese-film-chinese-movie|work=[[The Times of India]]|url-status=dead}}</ref>

With the increasing numbers of films being made, government brought Indian Cinematograph Act of 1918 for the censorship of the film and Central Board of Film Censors, to bring the uniformity into the film for their exhibition.

In 1949, Film Inquiry Committee was appointed by [[Government of India]]. Committee then, in one of its recommendations, recommended to institute the State Film Awards, to felicitate the films made in the country in various regional languages in order "to encourage the production of films of aesthetic and technical excellence and social relevance contributing to the understanding and appreciation of cultures of different regions of the country in cinematic form and thereby also promoting integration and unity of the nation".

== Juries ==

A committee of seven members was formed and was headed by [[Mangal Das Pakvasa]] as a chairman, for the awards to be given for the films released in the year 1953.<ref name="1staward"/>

* '''Jury Members'''
**[[Mangal Das Pakvasa]] ([[Chairman|Chairperson]]){{•}}[[Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay]]{{•}}[[Kalidas Nag]]{{•}}[[Ramdhari Singh Dinkar]]{{•}}B D Mirchandani{{•}}C V Desai{{•}}[[S. A. Ayer|S A Ayer]]

== Awards ==

State Awards for Films were categorised into three categories; Feature films, Documentaries and Children's films.

President's Gold Medal was given in Feature films and Documentaries categories and for Children's films, it was awarded as Prime Minister's gold medal. Certificate of Merit was given in all three categories. Awards were instituted, in order to encourage the production of the films of a high aesthetic and technical standard and educational and culture value.

President's gold medal for the All India Best Feature Film is now better known as [[National Film Award for Best Feature Film]], whereas President's gold medal for the Best Documentary Film is analogous to today's [[National Film Award for Best Non-Feature Film]]. For children's films, Prime Minister's gold medal is similar to [[National Film Award for Best Children's Film]]. Certificate of Merit in all the categories is discontinued over the years.

Following were the awards given in each category:<ref name="1staward"/>

=== Feature films ===

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="width:95%"
|-
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;width:33%;"|Award
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;width:20%;"|Film
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;width:10%;"|Language
! scope="col" colspan="2" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;width:32%;"|Awardee(s)
|-
!scope="col" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;" | Producer
!scope="col" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;" | Director
|-
|[[National Film Award for Best Feature Film|President's gold medal for the All India Best Feature Film]]
|''[[Shyamchi Aai (film)|Shyamchi Aai]]''
|[[Marathi language|Marathi]]
|[[Pralhad Keshav Atre]]
|Pralhad Keshav Atre
|-
| rowspan="2" | [[Discontinued and Intermittent National Film Awards#All India Certificate of Merit|All India Certificate of Merit]]
|''[[Do Bigha Zamin]]''
|[[Hindi language|Hindi]]
|[[Bimal Roy]]
|Bimal Roy
|-
|''Bhagavan Sri Krishna Chaitanya''
|[[Bengali language|Bengali]]
|[[Debaki Bose]]
|Debaki Bose
|-
|[[National Film Award for Best Children's Film|All India Certificate of Merit for Best Children's Film]]
|''Khela Ghar''
|Bengali
|Aurora Films
|
|}

=== Documentaries ===

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="width:95%"
|-
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;width:33%;"|Award
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;width:20%;"|Film
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;width:10%;"|Language
! scope="col" colspan="2" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;width:32%;"|Awardee(s)
|-
!scope="col" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;" | Producer
!scope="col" style="background-color:#EFE4B0;" | Director
|-
|[[National Film Award for Best Non-Feature Film|President's gold medal for the Best Documentary Film]]
|''Mahabalipuram''
|English
|[[Films Division of India|Films Division]]
|[[Jagat Murari]]
|-
|rowspan="2"|Certificate of Merit
|''Holy Himalayas''
|English
|Films Division
|K. L. Khandpur
|-
|''Tree of Wealth''
|English
|Information Films of India
|A. Bhaskar Rao
|}

=== Awards not given ===

Following awards were not given as no film was found to be suitable for the award:<ref name="1staward"/>

* [[National Film Award for Best Children's Film|Prime Minister's gold medal for the Best Children's Film]]

== Award gallery ==
{{Gallery
|title=National Film Awards – Gold Medals
|lines=4
|width=200
|align=center
|File:National Film Award for Best Feature Film.png|President's Gold Medal for the All India Best Feature Film is now better known as National Film Award for Best Feature Film
|File:National Film Award for Best Documentary Film.png|President's Gold Medal for the All India Best Documentary Film is now better known as National Film Award for Best Non-Feature Film
|File:National Film Award for Best Children's Film.png|Prime Minister's Gold Medal for the All India Best Children's Film is now better known National Film Award for Best Children's Film
}}

== References ==
{{reflist|3}}

== External links ==
* [http://dff.nic.in/Archive.aspx National Film Awards Archives]
* [http://dff.nic.in Official Page for Directorate of Film Festivals, India]

{{National Film Awards}}

{{#seo:
|keywords=National Film Awards (India) ceremonies, 1954 in Indian cinema, 1954 film awards
|description=
}}

[[Category:National Film Awards (India) ceremonies]]
[[Category:1954 in Indian cinema]]
[[Category:1954 film awards]]

1st National Film Awards - Revision history

MetaBOT at 16:12, 8 July 2023