‘Boong’ bags BAFTA award for Best Children’s & Family Film

NEW DELHI, Feb 23
In a major achievement for Indian cinema, ‘Boong’, a Manipuri-language film, won the BAFTA award for the category of Best Children’s & Family Film award.
Boong is directed by Lakshmipriya Devi and produced by Farhan Akhtar, along with Vikesh Bhutani, Alan McAlex, Ritesh Sidhwani and Shujaat Saudagar. The makers, including Farhan Akhtar, Ritesh Sidhwani, Lakshmipriya Devi and Alan McAlex, were present at the event held at London’s Royal Festival Hall to receive the award.
The cast of the film includes Gugun Kipgen, Bala Hijam Ningthoujam and Angom Sanamatum in prominent roles. According to IMDB, the film is about a schoolboy, Boong, who navigates racial tensions and border challenges in Manipur, driven by resilience and determination to reunite his divided family.
The movie won the award competing against other popular movies like Zootopia 2, Lilo & Stitch, and French sci-fi movie Arco.
Director Lakshmipriya Devi makes an emotional plea for peace
The film’s debutant director, Lakshmipriya Devi, made an emotional plea for peace in her acceptance speech after receiving the coveted trophy from Paddington Bear, the lead character starring in the West End show ‘Paddington The Musical’. She was joined on stage by producers Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani and the assistant director of ‘Boong’, Rahul Sharda.
“The walk up till here felt like the last few steps to reach a summit of a mountain we never knew we were climbing in the first place,” said Devi.
“Just want to use this opportunity to say that we pray for peace to return to Manipur, we pray that all the internally displaced children, including the child actors in the film, regain their joy, their innocence and their dream once again.
“We pray that no conflict is ever formidable enough to destroy the one superpower that all of us have as human beings, that is forgiveness. So, thank you BAFTA for giving us not only an award but this stage to express our hope,” she said.
The Manipuri film, starring Gugun Kipgen and Bala Hijam, beat international competition from other nominees ‘Lilo and Stitch’, ‘Arco’ and ‘Zootropolis 2’.
The film first premiered at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival in the Discovery section. It was later screened at many global film events, including the Warsaw International Film Festival 2024, MAMI Mumbai Film Festival 2024, the International Film Festival of India, and the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne 2025.  The Hindu