The South Indian International Movie Awards (SIIMA) 2025 began in Dubai on Friday, celebrating talent from the Telugu and Kannada film industries. The evening was dominated by two Telugu blockbusters—Pushpa 2: The Rule and Kalki 2898 AD—which took home several top honors.
Allu Arjun was named Best Actor for his performance in Pushpa 2: The Rule, while his co-star Rashmika Mandanna won Best Actress. Director Sukumar also picked up Best Director for the film, while Devi Sri Prasad bagged Best Music Composer. Kalki 2898 AD, directed by Nag Ashwin, won Best Film, with Kamal Haasan earning Best Villain and Amitabh Bachchan and Anna Ben winning in supporting roles.
Other Telugu winners included Satya, who won Best Comedian for Mathu Vadhalara 2, and Teja Sajja, who received the Critics’ Best Actor award for HanuMan. Critics’ Best Actress went to Meenakshi Chaudhary for Lucky Baskhar, while Prasanth Varma was honored as Critics’ Best Director for HanuMan. Several newcomers were also recognized, including Sandeep Saroj (Best Debut Actor) and Bhagyashree Borse (Best Debut Actress).
The Kannada film industry also had a proud moment with Gowri, which won multiple honors. Samarjit Lankesh was named Best Debutant Actor, while Sanya Iyer earned the Promising Newcomer award. Bheema actor Jack Singham won Best Actor in a Comedy Role, and Ajaneesh Loknath took home Best Music Director for MAX. Special recognition awards went to V Harikrishna and choreographer Imran S Sardhariya.
Meanwhile, the Malayalam and Tamil awards will be announced on Saturday. Leading the race is The Goat Life (Aadujeevitham) with 10 nominations, followed by ARM with nine and Aavesham with eight nods.
