The following list includes notable individuals who were born or have lived in Indore, India, or its surrounding towns and areas.
Rulers, Politicians and Nationalists
edit- Ahilyabai Holkar, ruler of Holkar State; built numerous temples, wells and dharamshalas all over India; spent most of her life in Maheshwar, then capital of the Holkars. Is said to have visited Indore only twice in her lifetime; but her name is synonymous with Indore and the university and airport are named after her
- Maharaja Yashwantrao Holkar, key figure in Maratha history; galvanized several years of resistance against the British Empire; called the Napoleon of India
- Yashwant Rao Holkar II (born 1908), the Maharaja of Indore belonging to the Holkar dynasty of the Marathas; born in Indore
- Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, Commandant of the Infantry School, Mhow during the 1950s
- Field Marshal K. M. Cariappa, first Indian Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army; studied at Daly College, Indore
- General Krishnaswamy Sundarji, Commandant of the College of Combat, Mhow (now known as Army War College) during the early 1980s
- Air Chief Marshal Shashindra Pal Tyagi, Chief of the Air Staff of the Indian Air Force, 2004–2007
- Jyotiraditya Scindia, Indian Politician, former President of MPCA, Hereditary Patron of Daly College, Indore
- Sumitra Mahajan, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Leader and MP; Member of Parliament from Indore Lok Sabha constituency since 1989 and lok sabha speaker
- Digvijaya Singh, Indian politician; former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh; senior leader of the Indian National Congress political party; studied at Daly College in Indore; alumnus of Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science, Indore
- Kailash Vijayvargiya - A heavyweight leader of Indore BJP, currently serving as General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
- Satyanarayan Patel, a senior leader of Indian National Congress party
- Afroz Ahmad is member in Government Of Indian appointed by Prime Minister of India
- Homi F. Daji, member of the 3rd Lok Sabha of India. He represented the Indore constituency of Madhya Pradesh and was a member of the Communist Party of India.
- Ramesh Mendola, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Leader and MLA; Member of Legislative Assembly from Indore-2 (Vidhan Sabha constituency) since 2008
- Ajit Jogi, first Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh; District Magistrate of Indore in the 1980s
- Prabhash Joshi, journalist, editor in chief of Jansatta (The Indian Express group)
- Guru Radha Kishan, Swatantrata Sangram Sainik, fought for the economic deprivation for the poor and issues of social deprivation
- Prakash Chandra Sethi, Indian National Congress politician; Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh; Member of Parliament from Indore Lok Sabha constituency (1984-1989); served in a number of positions in the Centre, including Home Minister, Defence Minister, Minister of External Affairs, Finance Minister, Railways, and Housing and Development
- Rajesh Agarwal, Deputy Mayor of London for Business present deputy Mayor of London for business, born in indore
- Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar Chairperson of Drafting Committee of Indian Constitution Social reformer, Born in Mhow, District of Indore
Artists, writers and literary figures
edit- Ustaad Amir Khan (born 15-08-1912), A celebrated Hindustani classical vocalist; referred to his unique style of khyal singing as "Indore Gharana"; born in Indore
- Bhalu Mondhe (born 15-03-1944) A Padma Shri awardee photographer, artist and environmentalist who played an important role in restoring the Sirpur Lake, an important bird habitat and a Ramsar site.
- Celina Jaitly, (born 24-11-1981) An Indian actress born in Shimla who mostly appears in Bollywood films; her parents live in the army town of Mhow in the Indore district.
- Digvijay Bhonsale, (born 31-03-1989) Rock/Metal Musician, Lead Vocalist/Guitarist of Nicotine, Metal band from Indore; studied at Daly College, Indore and Cardiff Metropolitan University, UK
- Hussain Haidry, Poet, writer and lyricist; born and brought up in Indore; studied at Indian Institute of Management Indore and Government Arts and Commerce College, Indore
- Johnny Walker, comedy actor; born in Indore
- Kiran Kumar, Mumbai-based Kashmiri Indian actor; studied at Daly College, Indore
- Kishore Kumar, playback singer and actor; belonged to Khandwa; studied at the Indore Christian College and used to stay in the hostel
- Kumar Pallana, Hollywood and Bollywood film actor, juggler, balance artist, teacher, yogi (1918 - 2013).
- Kunwar Amar, hip-hop and contemporary style dancer; played lead role in Dil Dosti Dance
- Lata Mangeshkar, playback singer; born in Indore to Pandit Dinanath Mangeshkar
- Mahadevi Varma, Hindi poet; freedom fighter; was married to Dr Swarup Narain Varma in Indore
- Meghdeep Bose, Indian music composer, producer, arranger and singer
- M. F. Husain, painter; spent his struggling years in Indore.
- Palak Muchhal, Indian playback singer; born and brought up in Indore
- Palash Muchhal, Musical composer; born and brought up in Indore
- Praveen Morchhale, Filmmaker, educated in Indore
- Puru Dadheech, Padma Shri, Kathak scholar, Dancer; Holder of the first Doctorate in Kathak Classical Dance in the world; Attended High School in Indore and returned to settle since 1988.
- Rahat Indori, Urdu poet and songwriter in Hindi films
- Rais Khan (born 1938), Indian sitar maestro; born in Indore
- Salman Khan, (born 27-12-1965) Indian film actor; Famous bollywood actor; born in Indore
- Shubhangi Atre, Indian television actor, a lead role in Bhabhiji Ghar par hai, born and brought up in Indore
- Sneha Khanwalkar, Indian music director; works in Bollywood; was brought up in Indore
- Swanand Kirkire, lyricist-singer-writer, born in Indore
- Vijayendra Ghatge, actor in the Hindi film industry; studied at Daly College, son of Sita Raje Ghatge, who was the daughter of Maharaja Tukojirao Holkar III of Indore (reigned 1903–-1926)
- Zakir Khan, Stand-up comedian,
- Shahbaz Khan (actor), Television actor, known for his role in "Chandrakanta" as "Kunwar Virendra Singh"; Son of Ustad Amir Khan, born and raised in indore.
- Mantra Well known RJ, Actor, Comedian; born and raised in Indore.
Sports persons and athletes
edit- Sandhya Agarwal, former captain of Indian women's cricket team
- Captain Syed Mushtaq Ali (1914–2005), Indian international cricketer; Colonel Nayudu's teammate in the Holkar team and in the Indian team; popularly known as the 'Errol Flynn' of Indian cricket; born and died in Indore[1]
- Minoti Desai (born 1968), Indian cricketer, represented Indian women's team; born in Indore
- Rahul Dravid, Indian cricketer and former cricket captain; born in Indore
- Raj Singh Dungarpur, former president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India; former Indian cricket selector; ex-student of Daly College, Indore
- Narendra Hirwani, leg spin bowler and former member of Indian cricket team; moved to Indore as a teenager
- Sanjay Jagdale, former state cricketer; presently a national selectors for the senior all-India teams and the honorary secretary of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association; director of the Cricket Club of Indore
- Shankar Lakshman (1933–2006), goalkeeper of the Indian hockey team in the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympics and won two golds and a silver; captain of the team which won the gold in the 1966 Asian Games; belonged to Mhow and lived his retired life here until his death
- Colonel C. K. Nayudu, first Indian Test Captain in cricket; led India between 1932 and 1934
- Mir Ranjan Negi, hockey goalkeeper and coach of Indian women's team; won Asian Championship
- Naman Ojha, Indian wicket-keeper, stays and practices in Indore
- Chandu Sarwate, former Indian cricketer and former Indian cricket selector; lived and died in Indore in 2003
- Jalaj Saxena (born 1986), cricketer who plays as an all rounder for the India A cricket team; born in Indore
- Akshat Khamparia (born 1989),is an Indian chess International Master.He is the first player from Central India to hold an 'International Master' Title
- Arundhati Kirkire, born and brought up in Indore who played for the Indian women's cricket team.
- Venkatesh Iyer cricketer, played for Indian team for some months, born in Indore.
- Avesh Khan cricketer, born in Indore.
- Rajat Patidar cricketer, born in indore.
Academia, business, research and professionals
edit- Deepak Chaurasia, journalist, editor in chief of India News
- Seth Hukumchand, He was known as the 'Cotton Prince of India' and had much credit even in some overseas countries.
- Ravi Salgia, translational thoracic oncologist, clinician/scientist, and academician
- Dr S Prakash Tiwari, Former Vice-Chancellor of S. K. Rajasthan Agricultural University, Bikaner, and Former Director of National Academy of Agricultural Research Management (NAARM), Hyderabad.
- Siddhartha Paul Tiwari, Academician and Researcher, UNESCO Chair on technology and sustainability