The 70th Filmfare Awards South were held on 21 February 2026 at the Adlux International Convention Centre in Kochi, and shockingly received poor TRP ratings. In urban areas, the 70th Filmfare Awards South Telugu ceremony recorded just 1 TRP, while urban+rural combined reached only 0.74 TRP.
Award Shows Face Unexpected Viewership Decline
Usually, award shows have a good response with TV viewers, but the 70th Filmfare Awards South show turned out to be a disaster on television. The low ratings raise questions about audience engagement with regional award ceremonies.
Pushpa 2 Dominates Telugu Category
The 70th Filmfare Awards South (2026) celebrated excellence in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada cinema in Kochi, Kerala. Pushpa 2: The Rule, which already brought big box office success, also dominated Telugu awards, while Amaran (Tamil) and Aadujeevitham (Malayalam) won major honours. Top acting awards went to Allu Arjun, Sivakarthikeyan, Sai Pallavi, and Mammootty.
Telugu Cinema Winners at the 70th Filmfare Awards:
- Best Film: Pushpa 2: The Rule
- Best Director: Sukumar (Pushpa 2: The Rule)
- Best Film (Critics): Lucky Baskhar (Venky Atluri)
- Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male): Allu Arjun (Pushpa 2: The Rule)
- Best Actor (Critics): Teja Sajja (Hanu-Man)
- Best Actress in a Leading Role (Female): Nivetha Thomas (35 Chinna Katha Kaadu)
- Best Actress (Critics): Kajal Aggarwal (Satyabhama)
- Best Supporting Actor: Amitabh Bachchan (Kalki 2898 AD)
- Best Supporting Actress: Anjali (Gangs of Godavari)
- Best Music Album: Devi Sri Prasad (Pushpa 2: The Rule)
- Best Lyrics: Ramjogayya Sastry for “Chuttamalle” (Devara: Part 1)
- Best Playback Singer (Male): Sri Krishna for “Kurchi Madathapetti” (Guntur Kaaram)
- Best Playback Singer (Female): Shilpa Rao for “Chuttamalle” (Devara: Part 1)
- Best Choreography: Sekhar Master for “Kurchi Madathapetti” (Guntur Kaaram)
- Best Debut Director: Yadhu Vamsi (Committee Kurrollu)
- Best Debut Male: Sandeep Saroj (Committee Kurrollu)
- Best Debut Female: Nayan Sarika (Gam Gam Ganesha)
- Best Production Design: Nitin Zihani Choudhary (Kalki 2898 AD)
- Ramakrishna & Monika (Pushpa 2: The Rule)
Other Regional Winners
Amaran (Tamil) led with eight awards, followed by Pushpa 2: The Rule (Telugu) and Aadujeevitham (Malayalam) with five awards each. The awards celebrated regional cinema excellence across South India.
Special Achievement: Amitabh Bachchan won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor (Telugu) for his role in Kalki 2898 AD, marking a rare crossover recognition. Critics’ Choice in Tamil went to Aravind Swami (Meiyazhagan) and Anna Ben (Kottukkaali).
The ceremony also recognized emerging talent and established icons across four major South Indian film industries, despite the disappointing television viewership numbers.