New Delhi, May 3
The 61st National Film Awards (2013) ceremony held in Vigyan Bhawan today —where President Pranab Mukherjee gave away the awards — reverberated with strong echoes of Punjab, Haryana and the troubled state of Jammu and Kashmir.

The highest recognition in the film industry, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, was given to noted lyricist, poet and film-maker Gulzar and the best actor award was co-shared by Rajkumar Rao for his role in Bollywood film “Shahid” and Suraj Venjaramoodu for his role in Malayalam film “Perariyathavar”.

The Rakesh Om Prakash Mehta-directed Hindi film “Bhaag Milkha Bhaag” got the award in the “Best popular film providing wholesome entertainment” category.

Rajkumar Rao, who hails from Gurgaon, won the best actor award for his inspiring role of a Kashmiri lawyer in a Hansal Mehta-directed film.

The President gave away more than 80 awards in both non-feature and feature film categories.