List of people from Himachal Pradesh

This is a list of notable people from Himachal Pradesh, India.

Arts

 * Baba Kanshi Ram - poet and independence activist
 * Chandradhar Sharma Guleri - writer and scholar
 * Gambhari Devi - folk singer and folklorist
 * Gautam Chand Sharma 'Vyathit' - folklorist, poet, writer
 * H.R. Harnot - writer
 * Nainsukh - painter of Kangra school of painting
 * Nirmal Verma - writer
 * Ram Kumar - painter
 * Shriniwas Joshi - writer and theatre artist
 * Siddharth Pandey - writer, photographer, musician
 * Vijay Sharma - painter and art historian

Business

 * M S Banga

Awardess of the Param Vir Chakra and equivalent awards

 * Major Som Nath Sharma - the first ever Param Vir Chakra awardee (1950)
 * Lieutenant Colonel Dhan Singh Thapa - Param Vir Chakra awardee (1962)
 * Captain Vikram Batra - Param Vir Chakra awardee (1999)
 * Rifleman Sanjay Kumar - Param Vir Chakra awardee (1999)
 * Major Sudhir Kumar Walia - Ashoka Chakra awardee (1999)
 * Jemadar Lala, Victoria Cross awardee (1916)
 * Honorary Captain Bhandari Ram - Victoria Cross awardee (1945)

Other notable defence personnel

 * Major General Siri Kanth Korla, PVSM, DSO, MC - decorated WWII and Indo-Pak War (1965) veteran
 * Major General Anant Singh Pathania, MVC, MC - decorated WWII and Indo-Pak War (1947-49) veteran
 * Brigadier Sher Jung Thapa, MVC - 'The Hero of Skardu' in the Indo-Pak War (1947-48)
 * Colonel Thakur Prithi Chand, MVC - the defence of Ladakh during the Indo-Pak War (1947-48)
 * Lt. Col. Kushal Chand, MVC - the defence of Ladakh during the Indo-Pak War (1947-48)
 * Subedar Major and Hony Captain Bhim Chand, VrC & bar - the defence of Ladakh during the Indo-Pak War (1947-48)
 * Lieutenant General Ranjit Singh Dyal, PVSM, MVC - Indo-Pak War (1965) veteran
 * Brigadier Rattan Nath Sharma, MVC - decorated Indo-Pak War (1965) and Indo-Pak War (1971) veteran
 * Group Captain Virendera Singh Pathania VrC, Vayusena Medal - first IAF pilot to make a confirmed kill of a Pakistani jet in independent India; veteran of the 1962, 1965, and 1971 wars
 * General Vishwa Nath Sharma, PVSM, AVSM, ADC - 14th Chief of the Army Staff in the Indian Army (1988-1990)
 * Lt. Saurabh Kalia - PoW in the Kargil War (1999)
 * Subedar Major and Hony Captain Chhering Norbu Bodh, SC - Mountaineer (1990s-2000s)

Historians from Himachal pradesh

 * Bipan Chandra
 * Chetan Singh
 * Hari Sen
 * Mian Goverdhan Singh
 * Om Chand Handa
 * Raaja Bhasin
 * Tobdan
 * Tshering Dorje

Judicial

 * Mehr Chand Mahajan
 * Deepak Gupta (judge)
 * Lokeshwar Singh Panta
 * Abhilasha Kumari
 * Sanjay Karol

Entertainment and Television

 * Adarsh Rathore - journalist, singer
 * Anuj Sharma - singer
 * Anupam Kher - film actor
 * Ashish R Mohan - film director
 * Asmita Sood - television actress
 * B. R. Ishara- film director and script writer
 * Kangana Ranawat - Bollywood actress
 * Manohar Singh - theatre and film actor
 * Mohit Chauhan - Bollywood singer
 * Motilal (actor)
 * Mrinal Navell - Actress
 * Neeraj Sood - Film Actor
 * Preity Zinta - film actress
 * Prem Chopra - Bollywood Actor
 * Priya Rajvansh - film actress
 * Purva Rana - model
 * Ravi Bhatia - television actor
 * Rubina Dilaik - television actress
 * Savi Thakur - Television actor
 * Shipra Khanna - chef
 * Shivya Pathania - television actress
 * Shriya Sharma - film actress
 * Siddharth Chauhan - screenwriter, director, and producer
 * Vishal Karwal - television actor
 * Yami Gautam - film actress

Chief Ministers

 * Yashwant Singh Parmar, the founder of the Himachal Pradesh state and its first chief minister (1952-1956; 1963-1977)
 * Thakur Ram Lal (1977; 1980-1983)
 * Shanta Kumar (1977-1980; 1990-1992)
 * Virbhadra Singh (1983-1985; 1985-1990; 1993-1998; 2003-2007; 2012-2017)
 * Prem Kumar Dhumal (1998-2003; 2008-2012)
 * Jai Ram Thakur (2017-2022)
 * Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu (2022–present)

Present and ex Union Ministers

 * Anurag Thakur
 * Jagat Prakash Nadda
 * Anand Sharma
 * Chandresh Kumari Katoch

Other politicians from Himachal Pradesh

 * Asha Kumari
 * Brij Behari Lal Butail
 * Chander Kumar
 * G. S. Bali
 * Jai Bihari Lal Khachi
 * Jagdev Chand Thakur
 * Kaul Singh Thakur
 * Khimi ram
 * Kishan Kapoor
 * Lata Thakur
 * Mahender Singh
 * Mukesh Agnihotri
 * Phunchog Rai
 * Pratibha Singh
 * Rajeev Bindal
 * Satpal Singh Satti
 * Sukh Ram
 * Thakur Devi Singh
 * Thakur Sen Negi
 * Vidya Stokes

Himachalis outside India

 * Gaurav Sharma (politician) - medical doctor and MP in New Zealand
 * Jay Chaudhry - CEO and founder of Zscaler a Nasdaq listed company in USA

Science and Education

 * Dr Randeep Guleria - Padma Shri, Director AIIMS New Delhi and Professor and Department Head of Pulmonary Disease and Sleeping Disorders
 * Dr Jagat Ram - Padma Shri, ophthalmologist and Director PGI Chandigarh
 * Dr Mahesh Verma - Padma Shri, Vice Chancellor Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University
 * Dr D.S. Rana - Padma Shri, nephrologist and Chairman, Board of Management, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital (India) New Delhi
 * Dr Jagdev Guleria - Padma Shri
 * Dr Omesh Kumar Bharti - Padma Shri
 * Arvind Mohan Kayastha - biologist
 * Anand Mohan - geologist, petrologist
 * R.C. Sawhney - scientist, professor
 * T. R. Sharma - plant biologist, educator
 * Vijay Kumar Thakur - engineer and nano-technologist
 * Munmun Dhalaria - documentary filmmaker
 * Bittu Sehgal - nature conservationist and writer

Sports

 * Ajay Thakur - kabaddi player
 * Ashish Kumar - silver medalist in Asian Games in boxing 2019
 * Charanjit Singh - hockey (1964 Olympics)
 * Chuni Lal Thakur - Winter Olympian
 * Deepak Thakur - hockey
 * Dicky Dolma - Mountaineer
 * Hira Lal - Winter Olympian
 * Manavjit Singh Sandhu - sports shooter
 * Manvinder Bisla - cricketer
 * Nanak Chand Thakur- Winter Olympian
 * Paras Dogra - cricketer
 * Renuka Singh - cricketer (India women's national cricket team)
 * Rishi Dhawan - cricketer
 * Samaresh Jung - sports shooter
 * Shiva Keshavan - luge (Winter Olympian)
 * Skalzang Dorje - Archery (1996 Olympics)
 * Suman Rawat - Track and field athlete
 * Sushma Verma - cricketer (India women's national cricket team)
 * The Great Khali - wrestler
 * Vijay Kumar - sports shooter

Religion

 * Khunu Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen - Buddhist teacher and scholar
 * Thakur Ram Singh - RSS and Akhil Bharatiya Itihas Sankalan

Non-Himachalis with significant contributions to HP

 * Amrita Sher-Gil - painter
 * Bhabesh Chandra Sanyal - painter
 * Brijinder Nath Goswamy - art historian
 * Didi Contractor - architect
 * Harish Kapadia - mountaineer and writer
 * Helena Roerich - philosopher and explorer
 * Kirin Narayan - anthropologist
 * Manohar Singh Gill - administrator, politician, and writer
 * Mohan Singh Oberoi - hotelier
 * Mohinder Singh Randhawa - art historian
 * Norah Richards - theatre
 * Nicholas Roerich - painter, philosopher, explorer
 * Penelope Chetwode - travel writer
 * Rahul Sankrityayan - scholar and travel writer
 * Samuel Bourne - early photographer
 * Satyananda Stokes - orchardist
 * Sobha Singh - painter
 * Svetsolav Roerich - painter
 * Tenzin Gyatso - the fourteenth Dalai Lama
 * Tenzin Palmo - Buddhist nun and activist
 * Timothy A. Gonsalves - academician, entrepreneur
 * Yeshi Dhonden - Sowa Rigpa doctor

Miscellaneous

 * Sansar Chand - ruler of Kangra in the 18th and early 19th centuries
 * Kinkri Devi - activist and environmentalist
 * Shyam Saran Negi - India's first voter
 * Zorawar Singh Kahluria - general of the Dogra army in the first half of the 19th century
 * Narain Chand Parashar - linguist, cultural historian, and politician
 * Pelden Gyeltshen - the 40th Ganden Tripa (17th century)