Overview

• Ministry of Information and Broadcasting announced the win on August 1 at a press conference attended by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister of State L Murugan and Secretary Sanjay Jaju.
• Lead actor Sanya Malhotra hailed the award as an honour for stories that blend humour with social commentary and thanked her collaborators for trusting her with the role.
• Debut director Yashowardhan Mishra said the honour reaffirmed his commitment to telling rooted stories and shared the accolade with his cast, crew and producing partners.
• Producers Ekta Kapoor, Guneet Monga Kapoor, Achin Jain and Shobha Kapoor highlighted Kathal’s rural setting and satirical lens as emblematic of the rising prestige of OTT-backed Hindi cinema.
• Netflix India’s Monika Shergill praised the creative risk and cultural impact of the direct-to-OTT release that premiered on the streaming platform in May 2023.