Paperman Media (Bhubaneswar)- Making the janata fall in love with film awards again, the Chetak Screen Awards 2026 celebrated everything that defines Hindi cinema and OTT in resplendent style, without missing its signature ingredient: credibility. In a star-studded ceremony in Mumbai on Sunday, April 5, the finest talents who made 2025 extra special for all of us were honoured with the Chetak Screen Awards, which were finalised through a rigorous, transparent process.
In Bollywood's biggest night in recent times, director Neeraj Ghaywan's Homebound was named Best Film. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and businesswoman Nita Ambani presented the trophy to the film's team. Meanwhile, director Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar emerged as the preeminent title at the ceremony, clinching 14 awards in total. Bollywood icon Dharmendra was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
While Aditya Dhar won the Chetak Screen Award for Best Director, Yami Gautam was named Best Actor (Female) for her performance in Haq, and Ranveer Singh bagged the trophy for Best Actor (Male) for Dhurandhar.
In a significant and timely move, the Chetak Screen Awards 2026 introduced five new categories to celebrate cinematic excellence in the OTT domain. While Sanya Malhotra won Best Actor (Female) – OTT Film for her performance in Mrs, Karan Tejpal’s Stolen emerged as a major winner at the Chetak Screen Awards, taking home Best OTT Film, Best Director – OTT film (Karan Tejpal), Best Actor (Male) – OTT film for Abhishek Banerjee, and Best Script – OTT film (Karan Tejpal, Gaurav Dhingra, and Swapnil Salkar).
The gala ceremony was nothing short of extravagant as Bollywood star Alia Bhatt took the stage as host, accompanied by actor-comedians Sunil Grover and Zakir Khan, and Saurabh Dwivedi, Editor – Hindi, The Indian Express. But at the same time, the Chetak Screen Awards were not just about opulence. In the In Memoriam segment, the Indian film industry legends who passed away in 2025 were honoured. As images of those icons appeared on the large screen, one by one, all the attendees stood, paying tribute to the departed.
