A single step industrially scalable reactive extrusion based technology for fabrication of recyclable polylactic acid(pla)/cellulose nanocrystal(cnc) nanocomposite films with improved physio-chemical, structural and barrier properties have been developed. the aforementioned methodology is carried out in a pilot-plant scale extruder (in presence of various compatibilizers) which helps to overcome technical difficulties associated with traditional processing of pla/cnc films (such as drastic reduction in molecular weight, drastic heat shrinkages in films & formation of black coloration due to cnc degradation during extrusion under high temperature and shear forces). pla chains grafted onto cncs forms branched and cross-linked gel-like structures of high molecular weight(mw~150-245kda) with high grafting efficiency(~67%) & gel-fraction yield(~69%). reactively grafted pla/cncs formed transparent films with reduced necking behavior and enhanced dimensional stability, as evident from the improved necking or thickness swell ratio and film inhomogeneity index values. the reactively extruded pla/cnc films shows significantly reduced oxygen and water vapor barrier properties as well as improvement in thermo-mechanical properties. utilization of these films as packages for storage of oil and dairy based products shows an improved shelf-life of~5 months and~2 weeks respectively, alongwith migration values within the set standard legislations, making it suitable for packaging applications . interestingly, processed biodegradable films shows recyclability (for~4 times) with properties adequate enough for developing value-added products for engineering applications. therefore, the developed technology provides an innovative processing approach for manufacturing sustainable pla/cnc based green and eco-friendly films with improved recyclability, biodegradability and non-toxicity for potential applications as food packages at commercial scale.