The 71st National Film Awards are out, the internet is buzzing, and National Award-winning filmmaker and this year’s jury member Neeraj Kumar Mishra didn’t hold back in his exclusive chat with Jaano Junction’ Kshitij Choudhary.

Calling the winners’ list “interesting”, “thoughtful” and “well-balanced,” Neeraj praised the selection process for its pan-India outlook. “We tried to scan all the talents across India. It was a very enriching experience,” he said.

Reacting to the Best Actor award being shared between Shah Rukh Khan and Vikrant Massey, Neeraj said, “Shah Rukh has a massive career, more than 3 Decades he has contributed to the industry.He deserves this award. Performances like Swades and Chak De also deserved national awards. It’s time to fill the generational gap.” He also called Vikrant “phenomenal” in 12th Fail and said both actors deserve this award equally.

But the conversation took a more serious turn when the topic shifted to regional cinema. Neeraj pointed out that there were no entries from Maithili this year — not even one. “See, the Maithili film industry isn’t fully established yet,” he explained. “It’s still in its early stages and going through a slow evolution, so it’ll take time.” He added that while there were a couple of Bhojpuri film entries, none were strong enough to stand out. “Overall, nothing came from Bihar, and that was quite disappointing,” he said.

Neeraj, who won Best Maithili Film at the 69th National Awards, didn’t hold back while talking about the Bihar government. “They make promises on paper but never actually deliver,” he said, recalling how he was “kept hanging” for a year despite promises of a promotional release and subsidies. “At the end of the day, they disappeared smoothly,” he added. “They have to step up.”

Watch the video:

From Shah Rukh Khan and Vikrant Massey sharing top honours to the complete absence of Maithili cinema this year, Neeraj Kumar Mishra took us through it all — the wins, the gaps, and the harsh truths behind the scenes. The awards may be out, but the conversation is far from over.