Updated on: Aug 02, 2025 05:25 pm IST
Prithviraj Sukumaran’s Aadujeevitham: The Goat Life did not win any National Awards. Shah Rukh Khan and Vikrant Massey shared the Best Actor prize this year.
The 71st National Awards were announced on August 1. Jury chairperson Ashutosh Gowarikar revealed the winners in the feature films category. Shah Rukh Khan and Vikrant Massey shared the Best Actor prize for Jawan and 12th Fail, respectively. (Also read: 71st National Film Awards full list of winners: Shah Rukh Khan wins first-ever Best Actor, Rani Mukerji is Best Actress)
No National Awards for The Goat Life
However, many on social media have wondered why Prithviraj Sukumaran and his film Aadujeevitham: The Goat Life failed to garner a single award. Now, National Awards jury member Pradeep Nair has revealed in an interview with Onmanorama that the Blessy directorial was indeed in contention for the awards but missed out during the final discussions.
During the interaction, Pradeep Nair said that the decision came down to Jury Chairperson Ashutosh Gowariker’s opinions on the film. He said, “Jury Chairperson Ashutosh Gowariker had seen the movie at a previous film festival in Goa and had serious concerns about the film’s adaptation and execution. Gowariker and others also felt the adaptation lacked naturality and the performances didn’t feel authentic.”
K R Gokul was in contention to win?
Pradeep also said that the film was in contention in categories of Best Male Playback Singer and Best Lyrics (for Rafeeq Ahammed’s Periyone Rahmane), but did not proceed further because there was no proper English translation of the lyrics, which were submitted by the producers.
Rohit won the award for Best Playback singer (male) for Premisthunna in Baby, while Kasarla Shyam’s work in Ooru Palleturu for the film Balagam won the award for Best Lyrics.
Meanwhile, Pradeep also added, “K R Gokul’s character was widely appreciated by the jury for its freshness and impact. Still, he was not awarded as categories also considered the overall quality of the film.” KR Gokul played the role of Hakim in the film.
About The Goat Life
Directed by Blessy, Aadujeevitham: The Goat Life is a biographical survival drama based on the life of Najeeb, a Malayali immigrant labourer in Saudi Arabia. It received critical acclaim and went on to do well at the box office after its release in 2024. The film earned ₹158 crore, becoming one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of all time.
