Actor Akshay Kumar and his producer/interior designer wife Twinkle Khanna reacted with excitement to their film Pad Man winning the National Award for Best Film on Social Issues on Friday 9 August, saying they were “completely overwhelmed.”
On Twitter, journalist Ananya Bhattacharya shared the news, writing, “ #PadMan gets Best Film on Social Issues. Congratulations, @mrsfunnybones, @akshaykumar and @radhika_apte! #NationalFilmAwards”
Twinkle responded to Ananya and wrote, “Thank you! Completely overwhelmed -I was in the car-saw this very tweet and discovered we actually won the National Award! #Padman”
Akshay replied to Twinkle, saying, “Yes and the next call was to me, half anxious...half excited to confirm if we’d actually won the #NationalAward for Best Film On Social Issues for #PadMan. All I can say, ‘Saari duniya se kaho, Copy That!’”
Twinkle replied back to Akshay’s tweet with a simple, “Yes :)“
In a longer statement, Akshay expressed special joy at Twinkle’s first production venture winning the prestigious award.
“I was in the midst of ‘Mission Mangal’ promotions when Tina called me asking if ‘Pad Man’ had actually won a National Award for Best Film On Social Issues. The tiredness of promotions vanished on hearing the news. I remember how, on the sets of ‘Pad Man’, Sonam and I got the news of winning our respective National Awards last year. So life has come a full circle. I couldn’t be happier for Tina for winning the award with her debut production and, of course, R. Balki for putting it all together, besides the entire team behind Pad Man. Not just that, Swanand Kirkire won Best Supporting Actor for ‘Chumbak’, a Marathi film I presented. It’s been a rewarding day,”Akshay Kumar
Pad Man director R. Balki was happy that the film had addressed the vitalissue of the need for sanitary hygiene among rural women. "I don't expect any awards for any of the films I do. I just hope people like it. (I hoped so for) This film especially because it catches a subject that hasn't been packaged anywhere in the world. To make a mainstream Hindi film on this subject was a fantastic thing and that's what I am very happy about. Also, the award truly belongs to Arunachalam Muruganantham," said Balki, referring to the man whose life and struggle to create cheap sanitary pads for rural women inspired the film.
Pad Man stars Akshay, Sonam Kapoor and Radhika Apte. It was produced by Twinkle and directed by R. Balki.
(Inputs: IANS)
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