The Indian Express Group’s Screen Academy has unveiled nominations for the Chetak Screen Awards 2026, with Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar emerging as the frontrunner with 24 nominations. Mohit Suri’s Saiyaara follows with 17 nods, while Neeraj Ghaywan’s Homebound has secured 15, underlining strong competition ahead of the April 5 ceremony.
Spanning 31 categories across theatrical and OTT releases, the awards reflect the expanding business and creative landscape of Hindi entertainment. From Best Film contenders such as Dhurandhar, Homebound, Saiyaara, Chhaava and Superboys of Malegaon to acting races featuring Ranveer Singh, Vicky Kaushal, Triptii Dimri, and Radhika Apte, the nominations highlight a mix of mainstream and content-driven cinema.
Established in 1995, the Screen Awards follow a merit-first evaluation process led by an independent academy of over 50 industry professionals. This year, more than 95% participation was recorded, with 38–40 members scoring each category using a trimmed mean methodology. A structured scoring rubric by Professor Priya Jaikumar of USC further strengthens transparency.
