List of Kashmiri people

This is an incomplete list of notable persons of Kashmiri origin.

Administrators and diplomats

• Munir Butt (1940- ), former British diplomat
• Birbal Dhar (early 19th century), invited Maharaja Ranjit Singh to Kashmir
• Durga Prasad Dhar (1918-1975), ambassador of India to the Soviet Union, and politician
• Mirza Pandit Dhar, prominent Kashmiri during the rule of Azim Khan
• P. N. Dhar, aide to Indira Gandhi, economist
• Purushottam Narayan Haksar (1913-1998), political strategist
• Rameshwar Nath Kao (1918-2002), first chief of the Research and Analysis Wing, India's intelligence agency (from 1969-1977)
• P. K. Kaul, ambassador of India to the United States from (1986-1989)
• Vijayendra Nath Kaul, Comptroller and Auditor General of India
• Triloki Nath Khoshoo (1927-2002), secretary of the Department of Environment in the Indira Gandhi Government, and environmentalist
• Mohan Lal (1812-1877), diplomat in the First Anglo-Afghan War, and writer
• Braj Kumar Nehru (1909-2001), Governor of Assam (1968-1973), and ambassador of India to the United States from (1961-1968)
• Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit (1900-1990), ambassador of India to the United States (1949-1952), President of the United Nations General Assembly (1953), politician, sister of Jawaharlal Nehru
• Tej Bahadur Sapru (1875-1949), lawyer, political and social leader during the British Raj
• Pirzada Ghulam Ahmad, Indian Administration Service, Chief Secretary and Accountant General, State of Jammu & Kashmir.

Armed forces

• Kapil Kak, Air Marshal in the Indian Air Force
• Brij Mohan Kaul, commanded the Indian forces in the Sino-Indian War
• S. K. Kaul (1934- ), Air Chief Marshal of the Indian Air Force, former Chief of Air Staff (India) (1993-1995]]
• Aziz Khan (1947- ), General in the Pakistan Army, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
• Tapishwar Narain Raina (1921-1980), Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army (1975-1978)
• Colonel Prakash Bhatt

Kings and royals

• Raja Sukh Jivan, king of Kashmir (1754-1762)
• Lalitaditya Muktapida, emperor of Kashmir (724-760)
• Maharaja Hari Singh (1895-1961), the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir
• Karan Singh (1931- ), son of Maharaja Hari Singh, diplomat, and politician
• Sultan Zain-ul-Abidin, ruler of Kashmir (1423-1474), known as Badshah, i.e., the great king

Artists

• Sajad H Hamdani
• Manohar Kaul (1925- ), painter
• Kuldeep Khosa (1940- ), painter
• Ratan Parimoo (1936- ), art historian, and painter
• Dina Nath Walli, painter
• Ghulam Rasool Santosh (1929-1997), painter

Authors and poets

• Dr. Allama Sir Muhammad Iqbal, poet, philosopher, and politician.
• Prof Dr Mohammad Sharif Chattar (1935-2007)-botanist,author,poet
• Ghulam Ahmad (1885-1952), poet, better known by the pen name Mahjoor
• Agha Shahid Ali (1949-2001), poet
• Chandrakanta (1938- ), novelist and short story writer
• Mahmud Gami (1765-1855), composed a version of the story of Yusuf and Zulaikha
• Krishna Hutheesing (1907-1967), author, and sister of Jawaharlal Nehru
• Manju Kak, short story writer
• Maqbool Shah Kralawari (1820-1876), lyricist
• Hari Kunzru (1969- ), British novelist of Kashmiri descent
• Saadat Hasan Manto (1912-1955), short story writer
• Qazi Abdul Ghani Nadeem (1938-2008) poet,scholar, and author
• Santha Rama Rau (1923- ), travel writer
• Salman Rushdie (1947- ), novelist and essayist
• Nayantara Sahgal (1927- ), Indo-Anglian writer, novelist
• Jaspreet Singh, novelist and playwright
• Mir Hassan Haseen Subla, poet
• Zinda Kaul 'Masterji'poet (1884–1965)
• Moti Lal Saqi (1936–1999), [poet, writer, folklorist and researcher]
• Javaid Rahi (1970- ), Poet and Expert on Gujjar affairs
• Basharat Peer (1977- ), Author

Economists

• Haseeb Drabu, economist

Journalists

• Salim Lone, Kenyan Journalist of Kashmiri descent
• Muzamil Jaleel Journalist and Bureau Chief of the Indian Express.
• Diwan Ali Kiani (1941-2008), Journalist, Chief Reporter at the Daily Jang, Media Advisor to Former President of Pakistan 1989-90, Former Bureau Chief of The Nation (newspaper) UK.
• Dr.Kavita Suri, J&K Bureau Chief, The Statesman

Jurists

• Nasim Hasan Shah (1929- ), former Chief Justice of Pakistan

Performing artists

• Mushtaq Kak (1961- ), Theater Director
• Anupam Kher (1954- ), Actor
• M.K. Raina (Active 1970- ), Actor, Director, Theater Artist.
• Yousuf Shahnaz (Active 1971- ) Theater Artist, Poet, Actor.
• Hakeem Javeed (Active 1975- ) Script Writer, Theater Artist, Actor/Director.

Philosophers and historians

• Abhinavagupta, (ca. 950-1020), philosopher, mystic and aesthetician
• Anandavardhana (820-890), philosopher and author of the Dhvanyaloka
• Bhaskara
• Prajna Bhatta (16th century), historian
• Jonaraja (15th century), historian
• Subhash Kak (1947- ), writer, philosopher, and computer scientist
• Kalhana (12th century), historian and author of Rajatarangini
• Bhatta Kallata, a notable Shaivite thinker
• Gopi Krishna (1903-1980), writer and mystic
• Kshemaraja (10th century), philosopher
• Lalleshwari (1320-1392), saint-poetess and a mystic of the Kashmiri Shaivite sect
• Shrivara (15th century), historian
• Somananda (875-925) a teacher of Kashmiri Shaivism
• Utpaladeva, a teacher of Kashmiri Shaivism
• Vasugupta (860-925), author of the Shiva Sutras of Vasugupta

Politicians and prominent lawyers

• Farooq Abdullah (1936- ), Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (1982-1984, 1986-1990, 1996-2002), son of Sheikh Abdullah
• Omar Abdullah (1970- ), member of the 14^th Lok Sabha, son of Farooq Abdullah, grandson of Sheikh Abdullah
• Sheikh Abdullah (1905-1982)), Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (1948-1953), Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (1975-1977, 1977-1982)
• Sadiq Ali (1952- ), politician, poet, writer, and environmentalist
• Ghulam Ahmad Ashai, educator, reformer, a founder of the University of Kashmir
• Indira Gandhi (1917-1984), Prime Minister of India, daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru
• Rajiv Gandhi (1944-1991), Prime Minister of India, son of Indira Gandhi, grandson of Jawaharlal Nehru
• Syed Ali Shah Geelani (1929- ), separatist leader, important member of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference
• Ram Chandra Kak (1893-1983), archaeologist and politician
• Neel Kashkari (1973- ), Interim Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Stability in the United States Department of the Treasury.
• Kailash Nath Katju (1887-1968), freedom fighter, a prominent lawyer who participated in the INA trials, former governor and chief minister of several Indian states, cabinet minister under Jawaharlal Nehru
• Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan (1934- ), politician, former prime minster and former president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir
• Yasin Malik, leader of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (Yasin Malik)
• Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad (1907-1972), Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (1953-1963)
• Mehbooba Mufti (1959- ), female politician, member of the 14^th Lok Sabha
• Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964), first Prime Minster of India
• Motilal Nehru (1861-1931), Indian independence activist, a president of the Indian National Congress political party
• Ghulam Hassan Pinglana, politician
• Syed Mir Qasim, Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (1971-1975)
• Mohammad Shafi Qureshi (1929- ), former governor of Bihar and of Madhya Pradesh, State Railway Minister
• Ghulam Muhammad Sadiq, Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (1964-1965), Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (1965-1971)
• Mufti Muhammad Sayeed (1936- ), Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (2002-2005)
• Khwaja Shams-ud-Din (1922-1999), Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (1963-1964)
• Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, Prime Minister of Pakistan (1990-1993, 1993, 1997-1999)
• Mian Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif, Chief Minister of Punjab, Pakistan (1997-1999, 2008- )

Saints

• Sheikh Noor-ud-din Wali (1377-1440), a poet and great social reformer

Scholars

• Muhammed Amin Andrabi (1940-2001), scholar of Urdu literature, literary criticism, comparative religion and Islamic philosophy, professor at the University of Kashmir
• Omkar N. Koul, researcher in linguistics, language education, communication, and comparative literature
• Balajinnatha Pandita (1916-2007), Sanskrit scholar, expert on Kashmir Shaivism, professor of Sanskrit and philosophy at Himachal Pradesh University
• Braj Kachru (ca. 1932- ), researcher in English linguistics
• Ravinder Kumar (1933-2001), historian
• Sayyid Syeed, former president of the Islamic Society of North America
• Giridhari Lal Pandit, historian of science, professor of philosophy
• Lalita Pandit, poet, professor of English at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse at La Crosse
• Jaishree Odin, post-modern literary theorist, professor of Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of Hawaii
• Shaikh Ghulam Ahmad (1923-2003)

Singers and Musicians

• Raj Begum
• Ghulam Mohammad Saznawaz
• Ghulam Nabi Sheikh, singer and composer
• Abdur Rasheed Hafiz
• Gulam Hassan Sofi
• Gulam Mohammad Dar
• Seema Anil Sehgal