IIFA 2025 | Kiran Rao's 'Laapataa Ladies' sweeps awards; wins best picture, direction & acting honours

Jaipur: Kiran Rao’s critically-acclaimed film Laapataa Ladies emerged as the biggest winner at the 2025 International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards, bagging 10 trophies, including Best Picture and Best Direction, at a star-studded ceremony held in Jaipur.

The film, which was named India's official Oscar entry, won in all major categories, with Rao taking home the Best Director award, while Nitanshi Goel secured the Best Performance in a Leading Role (Female) for her role of lost bride Phool.

"It's a rare privilege to win an award for a film like 'Laapataa Ladies'. It's been a wonderful night. It's a rare privilege to make a film like this," Rao said after accepting the trophy.

"There's absolutely nothing to compare with the love of people who say that we've not just watched your film once, but multiple times. It's what a filmmaker lives for. So thank you for watching our films," she added.

Bollywood star Kartik Aaryan clinched the Best Performance in a Leading Role (Male) for Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3.

In his acceptance speech, the actor, who also hosted the awards gala with Karan Johar, said people doubted him when he took over the franchise from superstar Akshay Kumar.

"'Bhool Bhulaiyaa' has been a journey full of difficulties. From the start, when I was selected for 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2', many questions were raised whether I will be able to carry the film," he said, adding that similar things happened during the making of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3.

"I want to thank the audience that supported us throughout this journey," he said.

An emotional Goel said she used to watch IIFA Awards on the television as a kid and never imagined herself being on the stage.

"It's a dream for anyone to be a part of a movie produced by Aamir Khan Productions and that's why it was a huge honour for me... People have showered love on Phool, please continue to do so," she said.

Goel also asked aspiring actors to never stop dreaming.

"If I can stand here, then you can also. Please dream big and they come true," she said, before referencing Shah Rukh Khan's popular dialogue from Om Shanti Om.

Her co-stars -- Ravi Kishan and Pratibha Ranta -- took home the awards for best supporting role (male) and best debut (Female), respectively.

Laapataa Ladies also won in several technical categories, including Best Story (Original) for Biplab Goswami, Best Screenplay for Sneha Desai, and Best Editing for Jabeen Merchant.

Prashant Pandey was awarded Best Lyrics for the song Sajni, while Ram Sampath received the Best Music honour.

Actor Janki Bodiwala won Best Supporting Role (Female) for her performance in Shaitaan, while Raghav Juyal was awarded Best Performance in a Negative Role for his role in Kill.

In the debut categories, Kunal Kemmu won Best Directorial Debut for Madgaon Express, while Lakshya Lalwani was named Best Debut (Male) for his role in Kill.

The Best Story (Adapted) award was given to the team of Merry Christmas, comprising Shriram Raghavan, Arijit Biswas, Pooja Surti, and Anukriti Pandey.

Article 370 won Best Dialogue trophy for Arjun Dhawan, Aditya Dhar, Aditya Suhas Jambhale, and Monal Thaakar.

Technical categories saw Kill winning Best Cinematography for Rafey Mahmood and Best Sound Design for Subash Sahoo, Boloy Kumar Doloi, and Rahul Karpe.

The Best Choreography award went to Bosco-Caesar for the song Tauba Tauba from Vicky Kaushal-starrer Bad Newz. Red Chillies VFX bagged Best VFX for Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3.

In the music categories, Jubin Nautiyal won Best Singer (Male) for Dua from Article 370, while Shreya Ghoshal was honoured with Best Singer (Female) for "Ami Je Tomar 3.0" from Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3.

At the ceremony, veteran filmmaker Rakesh Roshan was honoured with the Outstanding Achievement in Indian cinema award. He was felicitated by veteran actor Rekha.