The day before the theatrical release of the much-anticipated film "Rehana Maryam Noor" across the country, team RMN achieved two prestigious awards at the 14th Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) Thursday.

Abdullah Mohammad Saad, director of the film, got the Jury Grand Prize and actor Azmeri Haque Badhan won the award in the best actress category.

The team of "Rehana Maryam Noor" came up with the announcement at a press conference Thursday in the capital.

The winners of each category were announced at the 14th ASPA Ceremony in Australia's Gold Coast today, which was broadcast live across the world and joined by Badhan from Bangladesh online before the press conference.

Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, Egypt, Hong Kong, India, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Japan, Lebanon, New Zealand, Qatar, South Korea, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam, are among the 25 Asia-Pacific countries that received nominations in the 14th edition of APSA.

"It felt truly surreal, and I can't express my joy and happiness. As I have always said, none of this would have been possible without our director Saad and the entire team of our film, and I am thankful to them," Badhan told UNB.

"This was an excellent honour for our team especially before the release, and we are really looking forward to knowing the feedback of our beloved audiences about our film," Saad said.

"Rehana Maryam Noor" is going to be released Friday across the country. For the first week, the film will be showcased in 12 theatres including all four branches of Star Cineplex (Bashundhara City, Shimanto Shambhar, Sony Square in Mirpur and SKS Tower, Mohakhali), Blockbuster Cinemas (Jamuna Future Park), Shyamoli Cinema (Shyamoli), Madhumita (Motijheel) and Sena Auditorium (Savar).

Also, Sugandha (Kazir Deuri) and Silver Screen (Nasirabad) in Chittagong, Cinescope (Chunka Library) in Narayanganj and Madhuban (Chelopara) in Bogura are among the halls where the movie will be projected.

"Rehana Maryam Noor" received an uncut certificate from the censor board and has been officially nominated for the upcoming Oscars 2022 as the official movie of Bangladesh.

The film was screened at the 74th Cannes Film Festival's prestigious "Un Certain Regard" section on July 7.