Actor Manasi Parekh couldn't hold back her tears as she took home the coveted Best Actress National Award for her performance in the acclaimed Gujarati film, Kutch Express. The actor was honoured by President Droupadi Murmu at New Delhi's Vigyan Bhavan on October 8.
Manasi cried as she posed for the camera with the prize. She shared the Best Actress award with Nithya Menen, who won for her performance in the Dhanush-starrer, Thiruchitrambalam.
Manasi had earlier spoken about the honour and told India Today Digital, "I've been inundated with calls and messages, and I've been crying since, like, an hour and a half. Now I'm okay. My makeup is completely dissolved. It's incredible, because, firstly, the fact that I got Best Actress, and I'm sharing it with Nithya Menen, who is another incredible regional actress. Last year, this award was shared by Alia Bhatt and Kriti Sanon."
During the interview, Manasi also recalled her experience of shooting for Kutch Express and stated, "We were working very hard and there was always this feeling that this film is going to be something magical. And even Ratna Pathak Shah, who is such a veteran, came to me five days into the shoot, and said, ‘Manasi, I'm so proud and happy that this is my first Gujarati film. I'm very proud to be working with you and your husband.’ All of us were feeling that this was a very special film. Now, the National Award has validated that. But we were always very proud of the film."
Directed by Viral Shah, Kutch Express also features Ratna Pathak Shah, Dharmendra Gohil, Darsheel Safary and Viraf Patell in pivotal parts.
