Dadasaheb Phalke Award: Before Mohanlal, who were conferred with the prestigious recognition, Amitabh Bachchan, Rajinikanth, and others

Only on Saturday, it was announced that the L2 Empuraan actor Mohanlal will be conferred with Dadasaheb Phalke Award, considered the highest award in the field of cinema. Presented by the government of India each year, the award is named after Dadasaheb Phalke, an Indian director, screenwriter, and producer, to recognise his contribution. Ever since 1969, an artist has been chosen to be conferred with the award, and here are the previous awardees before Mohanlal.

As Mohanlal is honoured with Dadasaheb Phalke Award, here’s the list of those who were conferred before him

1969 - Devika Rani - Hailed as the first lady of Indian cinema, Hindi actor Devika Rani's debut feature Karma was first of its kind in many things. Not only was it the first Indian film in English, but also the first Indian film to have an onscreen kiss.

1970 - Birendranath - The Bengali producer founded International Filmcraft and New Theatres. He was also known for building theatres that showcased Hindi and Bengali cinema.

1971 - Prithviraj Kapoor - The Hindi actor with a theatre background, starring in the first Indian sound film Alam Ara in 1931.

1972 - Pankaj Mullick - A musician, actor and singer, Pankaj's contribution was immense when he conducted live orchestration for silent films during the screening.

1973 - Ruby Myers - Also known as Sulochana, Ruby Myers is considered the highest-paid actress of her time. She also happens to be the first sex symbol of Indian cinema.

1974 - BN Reddy - The Telugu filmmaker has about 15 films to his credit, apart from being the first awardee of Padma Bhushan.

1975 - Dhirendra Nath Ganguly - A pillar of Bengali cinema, the actor's brainchild is the three production companies Indo British Film Company, Lotus Film Company and British Dominion Films Studio, which went on to make many Bengali films.

1976 - Kanan Devi - Known as the first lady of Bengali cinema, the actor started out with silent films and co-sung with poet Rabindranath Tagore.

1977 - Nitin Bose - The Bengali-Hindi filmmaker, writer and cinematographer brought the concept of playback singing to Indian cinema in 1935 with the Bengali film Bhagya Chakra.

1978 - Raichand Boral - Another musician from the Bengal society, he is considered as the pioneer of playback singing in Indian cinema.

1979 - Sohrab Modi - An actor known for speaking his dialogues in Urdu, Sohrab introduced the classic English pieces of Shakespeare to India.

1980 - Paidi Jairaj - Paidi started out as working as a body double and eventually became an actor and director.

1981 - Naushad - Music composer Naushad introduced the technique of sound mixing to Indian cinema.

1982 - LV Prasad - The Indian film director, producer, and actor has the credit in starring in the first talkie film in Hindi (Alam Ara), Tamil (Kalidas), and Telugu (Bhakta Prahlada).

1983 - Durga Khote - Durga Khote acted in the first Marathi talkie film Ayodhyecha Raja.

1984 - Satyajit Ray - Known for his film Pather Panchali, Satyajit Ray is hailed as one of the masterminds of Indian cinema.

1985 - V. Shantaram - The actor and director made India's first colour film titled Sairandhri in 1931.

1986 - B. Nagi Reddy - A producer who backed over 50 films and set up Asia's then biggest studio, Vijaya Vauhini Studios.

1987 - Raj Kapoor - Raj Kapoor is considered as one of the icons of Hindi cinema.

1989 - Ashok Kumar - A prominent actor of Indian cinema who starred in blockbusters.

1990 - Lata Mangeshkar - Known as the Nightingale of India, Lata is a prominent playback singer.

1990 - Akkineni Nageswara Rao - The Telugu actor has over 250 films to his credit.

1991 - Bhalji Pendharkar - Bhalji Pendharkar directed silent films and shifted to talkies soon.

1992 - Bhupen Hazarika - The Assamese musician has incorporated folk music into his work.

1993 - Majrooh Sultanpuri - Lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri is known for having over 8000 songs to his credit.

1994 - Dilip Kumar - Another prominent actor from the Hindi cinema, who is often called the Tragedy King.

1995 - Rajkumar - The Kannada actor who has over 200 films to his credit.

1996 - Sivaji Ganesan - The Tamil actor who is known for playing versatile roles, is first Indian actor to win an international award, at the Afro-Asian Film Festival in 1960.

1997 - Kavi Pradeep - Penned Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo, Kavi Pradeep's works are known to be patriotic.

1998 - BR Chopra - A pioneer of Indian cinema and television series, he produced and directed Hindi films.

1999 - Hrishikesh Mukherjee - An Indian director who made Hindi films and concentrated on middle-class stories.

2000 - Asha Bhosle - Asha Bhosle is a prolific playback singer.

2001 - Yash Chopra - Hindi director and producer who has 22 films to his credit.

2002 - Dev Anand - A prolific Hindi actor and producer.

2003 - Mrinal Sen - Mrinal Sen, considered a prominent voice from Bengal cinema, made 27 films during his career.

2004 - Adoor Gopalakrishnan - The writer and filmmaker, considered one of the pillars of the Malayalam cinema, is known for his unique style and aesthetics.

2005 - Shyam Benegal - Shyam Benegal's films were taking a keen interest in issues of women and society.

2006 - Tapan Sinha - The Bengali-Hindi filmmaker had worked in over 40 films in which the stories addressed the issues of the common man.

2007 - Manna Dey - The playback singer who has 3500 songs to his credit, was a known musician of his time.

2008 - VK Murthy - VK Murthy's best-known work is Kaagaz Ke Phool by Guru Dutt. His other film Pyaasa is also known for its aesthetics.

2009 - D Ramanaidu - Telugu producer D Ramanaidu holds a Guinness Record for making films in nine languages.

2010 - K Balachander - The Tamil filmmaker is known for making films with women as protagonists and complex family dramas.

2011 - Soumitra Chatterjee - Soumitra Chatterjee, the Bengali actor, is known for frequently teaming up with Satyajit Ray.

2012 - Pran - Pran is a Hindi film actor, known for essaying negative roles.

2013 - Gulzar - The Hindi lyricist and director, often worked with AR Rahman and RD Burman.

2014 - Shashi Kapoor - Started out his journey as a child actor in theatre, he went on to star in films.

2015 - Manoj Kumar - The Hindi actor is known for starring in patriotic stories.

2016 - K Vishwanath - The Telugu actor and director made films that focussed on performing arts.

2017 - Vinod Khanna - The Hindi film actor, was known for his fashion sense and is now a political figure.

2018 - Amitabh Bachchan - The Hindi actor who is known for his voice, is one of the topmost actors of India currently.

2019 - Rajinikanth - Known as superstar, Rajinikanth is known for his onscreen charisma and style. He is one of the highest paid actors of the country.

2020 - Asha Parekh - Asha Parekh started out in films as a child artiste, and then went on to direct television serials.

2021 - Waheeda Rahman - Started out in Telugu, Waheeda went on to star in Kaagaz Ke Phool, Chaudhvin Ka Chand and more prominent titles.

2022 - Mithun Chakraborty - Mithun Chakraborty's first film Mrigayaa won him National Film Award for best actor and his Disco Dancer was first Indian film to enter 100 crore club.

Also read: Mohanlal on Dadasaheb Phalke Award recognition: ‘There’s a time for everything’; actor to receive honour on September 23

Mohanlal wins the Dadasaheb Phalke Award:

Started acting at the age of 18, Mohanlal is considered one of the pillars of Malayalam cinema and has been bestowed with multiple National Film Awards and Kerala State Awards. His recent films Thudarum and L2 Empuraan are among the highest-grossing Malayalam films this year.

FAQs

Q: Is Mohanlal getting the Dadasaheb Phalke Award?

A: Yes, Mohanlal will be presented with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award on September 23, 2025.

Q. When is Hridayapoorvam's OTT release?

A. Mohanlal's latest film with Sathyan Anthikad, Hridayapoorvam, will be available on JioHotstar from September 26.

Q. Which is the biggest hit movie of Mohanlal?

A. Mohanlal's first release of 2025, Empuraan, is among the highest-grossing Malayalam films. His next film Thudarum was also a blockbuster hit.