Indian Celebrities Born In November

Counted amongst world’s best batsmen, Virat Kohli is the former captain of Indian national cricket team. Under his captaincy, Indian cricket rose to great heights and he is the most successful Indian Test captain till date. He shot to fame when he led India’s Under-19 team to victory at the 2008 Under-19 World Cup. Since then, Virat Kohli has proved his talent in all forms of the game.

Referred to as King of Bollywood and King Khan in the media, Indian actor Shah Rukh Khan is considered one of the most successful film stars of the Hindi film indusrty. Beginning his career as a TV actor, he struggled for many years before making it big as a Hindi film star. 

The third Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi served as PM from 1966 till 1977 and then again from 1980 till her assassination in October 1984. She is considered one of India’s strongest PM and is hailed for leading India to victory over Pakistan in 1971, which resulted in the creation of Bangladesh. However, she is also categorised as authoritarian and is criticised for imposing Emergency in 1975.

Remembered for her heroics against the British, the Indian Joan of Arc Rani Lakshmibai remains an icon of the 1857 Indian Rebellion. The wife of Maharaja Gangadhar Rao, she is known for leading the fight against the British after her husband’s death. She also inspired the legendary lines Khoob Ladi Mardani.

Indian actress Aishwarya Rai is one of the most popular and influential celebrities in the country. She began her career as a model and was crowned the Miss World 1994. She started acting soon after and became one of India’s top actresses. Besides acting, she is a Goodwill Ambassador for the Joint United Nations Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS).

An impressive doubles tennis player, Sania Mirza has six Grand Slam titles under her belt. A former doubles world No. 1, Sania Mirza is one of the greatest Indian female  tennis players ever. In 2005, Sania Mirza was named in Time magazine's 50 Heroes of Asia list. In 2016, she was named in the magazine's 100 most influential people in the world list.

Jawaharlal Nehru was one of the central figures of the Indian independence movement along with personalities like Mahatma Gandhi. He became the first prime minister of India and left behind such a legacy that his direct descendants continue to play an important role in Indian politics.

A child prodigy who was never formally educated, Shakuntala Devi became a mathematical genius earning the title of Human Computer for her exceptional calculating abilities. The Indian genius was also an astrologer and a gifted writer who authored books on maths, astrology, homosexuality in India and a crime thriller novel.

Indian track and field legend Milkha Singh, also known as "The Flying Sikh,” was orphaned during the Partition of India. The former army man won four Asian Games gold medals. He also competed in the 1956, 1960, and 1964 Summer Olympics, finishing fourth in the 400-meter event in 1960.

Aurangzeb reigned over most part of the Indian subcontinent for 49 years as the sixth Mughal emperor. He helped the Mughal Empire reach its greatest extent and helped India become the biggest manufacturing power and the world's largest economy. He was known for his religious piety and led a very simple life..

Anushka Shetty is an Indian film actress and model renowned for her work in the Tamil and Telugu film industries. Known as the Lady Superstar of the Cinema of South India, Shetty is often counted among the highest-paid actresses. Apart from featuring in many successful films, Anushka Shetty has also received several awards, including Nandi Awards and Filmfare Awards South.

Tabu is an Indian actress best known for her work in the Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu film industries. One of the most celebrated actresses of her generation, Tabu is renowned for playing unconventional roles. In 2011, she was honored with the Padma Shri by the Indian Government. She has also received other prestigious awards, such as National Film Awards.

Indian physicist, biologist, and plant physiologist Jagadish Chandra Bose revolutionized science with his research on how plants and animals react to external stimuli. He founded the Bose Institute, made pioneering contribution to the field of radio and microwave optics, and also penned one of the first works of Bengali science fiction.

Known for his aggressive batting, Indian middle-order batsman Suresh Raina is also a phenomenal fielder. He was part of India’s 2011 World Cup squad and became the first Indian cricketer with a century in all forms of international cricket. He retired in 2020 but will continue to play IPL matches.

Though she initially aspired to be a singer, Raashi Khanna was also studious and later wished to become an IAS officer. She then worked as an ad copywriter for a while before making her film debut with Madras Café. She later soared to fame in the Tamil and Telugu film industries.

In spite of his short life, which ended at age 24, Birsa Munda is remembered for spearheading the tribal movement against the British. He also made the British introduce new laws for the protection of the tribal land rights. He died in prison while undergoing trials.

Yami Gautam is an Indian actress who came into prominence after being chosen as the face of the popular skin-lightening cosmetic product Fair & Lovely. Also known for her good looks, Yami Gautam frequently appears on lists, such as Times of India's Most Desirable Woman.

Known for his cult films such as Munna Bhai M.B.B.S., 3 Idiots, and PK, Rajkumar Hirani showed a keen interest in theater and film editing in his early days. He also tried his luck in directing ad films and appeared in an iconic Fevicol ad. He has also won 11 Filmfare Awards.  

Apart from her bestselling books such as The God of Small Things, Man Booker Prize-winning Indian author Arundhati Roy is also known for her left-wing political activism. Born to a Syrian Christian mother and an Indian Hindu father, Roy had initially studied architecture and worked as a script writer.

Padma Bhushan- and Dadasaheb Phalke Award-winning legendary actor and filmmaker Prithviraj Kapoor is known to be one of the pioneers of Hindi cinema. The patriarch of the Kapoor family of Bollywood, he also established Prithvi Theatres and later played the iconic role of Akbar in Mughal-e-Azam. He was also a Rajya Sabha MP.

Better known as the younger brother of renowned Indian actor Ayushmann Khurrana, Aparshakti Khurana is an actor who was once a cricketer and had also captained the Haryana U-19 cricket team. He has impressed audiences with his Filmfare-nominated roles in Stree and Dangal and has also worked as a composer.

The second Indian badminton player to win the All-England Open Badminton Championships, Indian badminton star Pullela Gopichand now coaches the Indian national team. He was 11 when he began playing the sport. An Asian Championship bronze winner, he has been awarded countless honors, such as the Arjuna Award and the Padma Bhushan.

A pioneer of Hindi romantic poetry and the Chhayavaad movement, Harivanshrai Bachchan is best remembered for his book of 135 quatrains, Madhushala. He was the first Indian to earn a PhD in English literature from Cambridge University. He was also the father of legendary Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan.

Known as the Birdman of India, legendary ornithologist Salim Ali was the first to conduct bird surveys in India. The Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan winner is best remembered for penning the book The Book of Indian Birds, and for setting up the Bharatpur and Ranganathittu bird sanctuaries.

L. K. Advani is a retired Indian politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of India from 2002 to 2004. A co-founder of the Bharatiya Janata Party, he has also been the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha on two occasions. He is a recipient of the Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian honor.

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad was an Indian independence activist, Islamic theologian, and scholar. He played a key role in the Indian independence movement, serving as a senior leader of the Congress. His contribution to the Indian education system is recognized across India by celebrating his birthday as National Education Day.