“I am humbled by this honour,” says Akshay

Reacting to the news of having bagged National Film Awards, actors Akshay Kumar and Sonam Kapoor took to social media to share their surprise and excitement with their fans and followers.

Akshay won the Best Actor award for his film Rustom while Sonam's Neerja won the Best Hindi Film award on Friday.

When the news broke, both actors were together in Maheshwar, Madhya Pradesh, shooting for their upcoming film upcoming film Pad Man. 

Sharing a photo with Akshay on Instagram, Sonam wrote: “Who would’ve thought!! Shocked and grateful!! All the way from maheshvar!!! #nationalawards #neerja #rustom @akshaykumar.”

The 'Khiladi' star posted a video, sharing his feelings with his fans, on his Twitter handle. In the minute-long video, he said that wearing the uniform of Indian Navy was an honour in itself and now, the national award for that role has made it even more special.

Rustom is based on the real-life story of K.M. Nanavati, an Indian Navy officer, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for killing his wife's paramour in 1959. Even at the time of the release in August 2016, Akshay's portrayal of the patriotic, morally-upright Naval officer, Rustom Pavri, had been widely appreciated.

Thanking the national award jury and his fans, the 49-year-old actor said: "I am truly humbled by this honour. I would like to thank the national award jury and all my fans from the core of my heart for believing in my talent."

He dedicated the award to his parents and family. He made a special mention of his wife Twinkle Khanna and said: “I will like to thank my wife who used to tease me often, saying that its good that I stopped attending award functions since I never returned with an award.”

Overwhelmed with her husband’s win, Twinkle expressed her joy and excitement on Twitter. "I don't know if I am crying or laughing-emotions all over the place-So proud of you @akshaykumar you smart, humble, amazing creature!"

Since afternoon, Twitter has been abuzz with congratulatory messages for Akshay from members of the Indian film fraternity. Addressing him by his screen name, his co-star in Rustom, Ileana D'Cruz, tweeted: “Russi continuing to win hearts nationwide and his Cynthia couldn't be prouder! Congratulations @akshaykumar!” Meanwhile, actor Anupam Kher congratulated him for the award and an inspirational career graph as an actor. Here's how some of the biggest names in Bollywood reacted to the news: