South Indian cinema took centre stage in Dubai as the South Indian International Movie Awards 2025 (SIIMA) took place on Saturday (September 6) at the Dubai Exhibition Centre. The two-day celebrations brought together the biggest names from Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu and Kannada industries. In Sandalwood and Tollywood, films like Kalki 2898 AD, Pushpa 2: The Rule and Gowri won big at the prestigious award function, with actors Rashmika Mandanna and Allu Arjun shining bright in the Best Actor categories. Sukumar and Nag Ashwin's Pushpa 2 and Kalki 2898 AD took home 4 awards, including the coveted Best Film honour. Is Rashmika Mandanna Engaged to Vijay Deverakonda? Diamond Ring at Airport Sparks Buzz Ahead of SIIMA 2025 Dubai As She Stuns in Champagne Saree on the Red Carpet (Watch Video).

In the Tamil and Malayalam segment, movies like Amaran and Aadujeevitham, aka The Goat Life, bagged the awards for the Best Director and Best Film categories. Actor Joju George took home the award for Best Debutant Director for the film Pani. He also plays the lead role in the action-thriller co-starring Abhinaya and Sagar Surya. Check out the full list of SIIMA 2025 winners below.

SIIMA 2025 Winners List

Telugu 

Best Actor: Allu Arjun (Pushpa 2: The Rule)

Best Actress: Rashmika Mandanna (Pushpa 2: The Rule)

Best Director: Sukumar (Pushpa 2: The Rule)

Best Film: Kalki 2898 AD

Best Villain: Kamal Haasan (Kalki 2898 AD)

Best Supporting Actor: Amitabh Bachchan (Kalki 2898 AD)

Best Supporting Actress: Anna Ben (Kalki 2898 AD)

Best Comedian: Satya (Mathu Vadhalara 2)

Best Cinematographer: Ratnavelu (Devara)

Best Music Composer: Devi Sri Prasad (Pushpa 2: The Rule)

Best Lyric Writer: Ramajogaiah Sastry ("Chuttamalle" – Devara)

Best Singer (Male): Kandukoori Shankar Babu ("Peelings" – Pushpa 2: The Rule)

Best Singer (Female): Shilpa Rao ("Chuttamalle" – Devara)

Best Actor (Critics): Teja Sajja (HanuMan)

Allu Arjun Wins Best Actor Award for ‘Pushpa 2: The Rule’

 

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Kannada 

Best Director: Upendra Kumar (UI)

Best Actor: Sudeep

Best Actress: Ashika Ranganath

Best Film: Krishnam Pranaya Sakhi

Best Music Director – Kannada award for MAX: B Ajaneesh Loknath

Best Actor In a Comedy Role: Jack Singham (Bheema)

Best Debutant Director award: Sandeep Sunkad (Shakhakaari)

Best Debutant Actor: Samarjit Lankesh (Gowri)

Promising Newcomer: Sanya Iyer (Gowri)

Best Debutant Actress: Ankita Amar

Song Design of The Year: Imran S Sardhariya

Special Award at SIIMA 2025: V Harikrishna

 

Tamil 

Best Film: Amaran

Best Director: Rajkumar Periasamy (Amaran)

Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female): Sai Pallavi (Amaran)

Sai Pallavi at SIIMA Awards 2025

 

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Best Actor in a Negative Role: Anurag Kashyap (Maharaja)

Best Actor in a Comedy Role: Bala Saravanan (Lubber Pandhu)

Best Director Critics’ Choice: Nithilan Saminathan (Maharaja)

Best Actor in a Leading Role – Critics’ Choice: Karthi (Meiyazhagan)

Best Actress in a Leading Role – Critics’ Choice: Dushara (Raayan)

Special Rising Star: Harish Kalyan (Lubber Pandhu)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Male): Kalaiyarasan (Vaazhai)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Abhirami (Maharaja)

Special Award – Fresh Face: Sanjana Krishnamoorthy (Lubber Pandhu)

Best Debutant Director: Tamizharasan Pachamuthu (Lubber Pandhu)

Best Debutant Actor (Male): Vijay Kanishka (Hit List)

Best Debutant Actress: Sri Gouri Priya (Lover)

Best Music Director: GV Prakash Kumar (Amaran)

Best Playback Singer (Male): Haricharan for "Hey Minnale" (Amaran)

Best Playback Singer (Female): Sinduri for "Minikki Minikki" (Thangalaan)

Best Lyric Writer: Umadevi Kuppan for Poraen Naa Poraen

Best Cinematographer: Ch Sai (Amaran)

Malayalam 

Best Film: Manjummel Boys

Best Director: Blessy (Aadujeevitham akaThe Goat Life)

Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male): Prithviraj Sukumaran (Aadujeevitham aka The Goat Life)

Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female): Urvashi (Ullozhukku)

Urvasi at SIIMA Awards 2025

 

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Best Actor in a Comedy Role: Shyam Mohan (Premalu)

Best Actor in a Negative Role: Jagadeesh (Marco)

Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male) – Critics’ Choice: Unni Mukundan

Best Debutant Director: Joju George (Pani)

Best Debutant Actor (Male): KR Gokul (Aadujeevitham)

Best Debutant Actress: Neha Nazneen (Qalb)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Male): Vijayaraghavan (Kishkindha Kaandam)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Female): Akhila Bhargavan (Premalu)

Best Cinematographer: Shehnad Jalal (Bramayugam, Ullozhukku)

Best Lyric Writer: Suhail Koya (Premalu)

Best Music Director: Dhibu Ninan Thomas (ARM)

Best Playback Singer (Female): Vaikom Vijayalakshmi for Angu Vaana Konilu (ARM)

Best Playback Singer (Male): K S Harisankar for Kiliye (ARM) ‘Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra’ Movie Review: Kalyani Priyadarshan Powers Malayalam Cinema’s First Female Superhero Film With Naslen’s Solid Support (LatestLY Exclusive).

The award ceremony also honoured music composer and singer V Harikrishna with a special award recognising his invaluable contribution to South Indian cinema.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 08, 2025 09:47 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).