Mumbai: The 7th edition of the Screenwriters Association Awards 2026 celebrated some of the finest writing talents in Indian cinema and streaming content, with Aryan Khan emerging as one of the biggest winners of the night for his debut series The Ba***ds of Bollywood.
Held amid growing conversations around artificial intelligence and the changing entertainment landscape, the awards honoured writers across feature films, web series, television and lyrics. Acclaimed titles including Stolen, Black Warrant and Paatal Lok also emerged as major winners during the ceremony.
The evening featured 15 award categories recognising excellence in storytelling, screenplay writing, dialogues and lyrics.
Aryan Khan wins big for debut series
Aryan Khan made a strong debut at the awards as The Ba***ds of Bollywood converted both of its nominations into victories in the Web Comedy/Musical/Romance category.
He won the Best Dialogue award individually and also shared the Best Screenplay honour alongside co-writers Bilal Siddiqi and Manav Chauhan.
The recognition marks a significant milestone for Aryan Khan, who has gradually stepped into the entertainment industry as a writer and filmmaker rather than as an actor.
The Netflix-backed series has generated strong buzz for its satirical and dramatic take on the film industry.
SWA highlights writers’ importance in changing industry
During the event, lyricist and SWA General Secretary Raj Shekhar spoke about the importance of protecting writers’ rights at a time when the entertainment industry is witnessing rapid technological transformation.
“In this era of AI, I am happy to see so many living, breathing, whole human beings,” Raj Shekhar said during the ceremony.
He also revealed that 2026 could become a landmark year for Indian screenwriters due to the introduction of royalty payments.
“I am also very happy to tell you that 2026 will be a historic year when Indian screenwriters will get their royalties for the first time,” he added.
According to him, the achievement follows a 12-year-long effort led by the Screenwriters Rights Association of India, with royalty payments reportedly beginning from countries including Uruguay and Chile.
Stolen and Black Warrant dominate major categories
The thriller film Stolen emerged as one of the night’s biggest feature film winners.
Writers Karan Tejpal, Gaurav Dhingra and Swapnil Salkar won both Best Story and Best Screenplay in the feature film categories.
Meanwhile, Reshu Nath received the Best Dialogue award for the Haq starring Yami Gautam.
In the web drama segment, horror drama Khauf secured the Best Story award for writer Smita Singh.
The second season of Paatal Lok won Best Screenplay, with honours going to Sudip Sharma, Abhishek Banerjee, Rahul Kanojia and Tamal Sen.
Writers Satyanshu Singh and Arkesh Ajay won Best Dialogue in the web drama category for Black Warrant.
Television and lyrics categories recognised
Television content also received recognition during the ceremony.
Rajesh Joshi and Shabia Walia won Best Story for Pushpa Impossible.
Harneet Singh won Best Screenplay for Itti Si Khushi, while Sneha Desai and Tushar Ishwer secured Best Dialogue for Pushpa Impossible.
In the lyrics categories, Anvita Dutt won Best TV/Web Lyrics for the song Naseeba from Black Warrant.
Veteran lyricist Gulzar received the Best Feature Film Lyrics award for Hum Fanaa from Gustaakh Ishq.
Jury reviewed hundreds of entries
SWA Awards Chairperson Siddhant Makkar revealed that the jury evaluated nearly 700 songs, over 80 television shows, around 100 web series and more than 130 feature films before finalising the winners.
The large number of submissions reflected the growing scale and diversity of India’s entertainment writing industry across theatrical releases, OTT platforms and television.
Full list of winners
- Best Feature Film Debut: Aranya Sahay for Humans in the Loop
- Web Drama Best Story: Smita Singh for Khauf
- Web Drama Best Screenplay: Sudip Sharma, Abhishek Banerjee, Rahul Kanojia and Tamal Sen for Paatal Lok Season 2
- Web Drama Best Dialogue: Satyanshu Singh and Arkesh Ajay for Black Warrant
- Television Best Story: Rajesh Joshi and Shabia Walia for Pushpa Impossible
- Television Best Screenplay: Harneet Singh for Itti Si Khushi
- Television Best Dialogue: Sneha Desai and Tushar Ishwer for Pushpa Impossible
- Web Comedy/Musical/Romance Best Story: Chirag Garg and Avinash Dwivedi for Dupahiya
- Web Comedy/Musical/Romance Best Screenplay: Aryan Khan, Bilal Siddiqi and Manav Chauhan for The Ba***ds of Bollywood
- Web Comedy/Musical/Romance Best Dialogue: Aryan Khan for The Ba***ds of Bollywood
- TV/Web Best Lyrics: Anvita Dutt for Naseeba from Black Warrant
- Feature Film Best Lyrics: Gulzar for Hum Fanaa from Gustaakh Ishq
- Feature Film Best Story: Karan Tejpal, Gaurav Dhingra and Swapnil Salkar for Stolen
- Feature Film Best Screenplay: Karan Tejpal, Gaurav Dhingra and Swapnil Salkar for Stolen
- Feature Film Best Dialogue: Reshu Nath for Haq
Conclusion
The 7th Screenwriters Association Awards highlighted the growing importance of writers in India’s evolving entertainment industry. With Aryan Khan’s successful debut and discussions around AI and royalties taking centre stage, the event reflected both the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of storytelling in Indian cinema and streaming content.