The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity Wins Best Romance Anime and Manga at the 2026 Daruma Awards

A double win in Paris

The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity took home both Best Romance Anime and Best Romance Manga at the 2026 Daruma Awards, the annual manga and anime honors presented at Japan Expo in Paris. The ceremony was held on July 10, 2026, at the Paris-Nord Villepinte Exhibition Center and marked the 10th anniversary of the Daruma Awards. Winners are chosen through a mix of a professional jury and public voting, with fan ballots weighted as heavily as the panel in each category. The Daruma Awards spotlight manga and anime released over the previous year and are framed as a discovery guide for readers and viewers; the 2026 edition spanned 20 categories and added a new Best New Manga prize created in partnership with retailer Fnac.

Saka Mikami's series appears on the French winners' roster under its local release title, "Bloom," which is why the anime and manga were listed under that name. On the anime side the trophy went to the CloverWorks television adaptation, while the manga award recognized Mikami's original work.

The rest of the field

The romance double was one highlight of a crowded night. According to the published results, Studio Bones' Gachiakuta was named Best Anime of the Year and also won Best Action Anime, while Inio Asano's Mujina Into the Deep was crowned Best Manga of the Year. The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity was additionally nominated for Best Anime, Best Manga, Best Screenplay, and Best New Manga, though it did not take those categories.

The Daruma recognition adds to an already strong awards run. Earlier in 2026 the adaptation won Best Romance at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards, underlining how firmly the series has connected with audiences beyond Japan.

About the series

The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity follows Rintarou Tsumugi, an intimidating student at a rough public high school, and Kaoruko Waguri, an open-hearted girl from the elite, all-female academy next door. The two schools openly despise each other, which turns the pair's growing closeness into a quiet act of defiance and gives the romance its gentle, slow-burn tension.