The 38th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 1990. Ceremony took place in 1991.

Lekin... (transl. But...) is a 1991 Hindi drama mystery film, loosely based on the 1895 short story Kshudhit Pashaan by Rabindranath Tagore and directed by Gulzar. It stars Vinod Khanna, Dimple Kapadia, Amjad Khan, Alok Nath, and Beena Banerjee, and features a special appearance by Hema Malini. The film tells the story of Reva, a restless ghost who seeks liberation and haunts the ancient palace of Raja Param Singh in Rajasthan when she is discovered by Sameer, a museum curator sent by the government to salvage valuables in the region. As she recreates a visual representation of the history of the palace which reveals her tragic story, Sameer becomes determined to help set her free.