Events in the year 1997 in the Republic of India.

Incumbents

President of India The president of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, and the commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the Indian Armed ...

–

Shankar Dayal Sharma Shankar Dayal Sharma (; 19 August 1918 – 26 December 1999) was an Indian lawyer and politician who served as the President of India from 1992 to 1997. Born in Bhopal, Sharma studied at Agra, Allahabad and Lucknow and received a doctorate i ...

until 25 July,

K. R. Narayanan Kocheril Raman "K. R." Narayanan (27 October 1920 – 9 November 2005) was an Indian statesman, diplomat, academic, and politician who served as the vice president of India from 1992 to 1997 and president of India from 1997 to 2002. Naray ...

Prime minister of India The prime minister of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen Union Council of Ministers, Council of Ministers, despite the president of ...

– H. D. Deve Gowda until 21 April,

Inder Kumar Gujral Inder Kumar Gujral (4 December 1919 – 30 November 2012) was an Indian diplomat, politician, and anti-colonial independence activist, who served as prime minister of India from April 1997 to March 1998. Born in Punjab, he was influenced by ...

Vice President of India The vice president of India (ISO: ) is the deputy to the head of state of the Republic of India, i.e. the president of India. The office of vice president is the second-highest constitutional office after the president and ranks second in t ...

–

until 21 August, Krishna Kant *

Chief Justice of India The chief justice of India (CJI) is the chief judge of the Supreme Court of India and the highest-ranking officer of the Indian judiciary. The Constitution of India grants power to the President of India to appoint, as recommended by the outg ...

–

Aziz Mushabber Ahmadi Aziz Mushabber Ahmadi (25 March 1932 – 2 March 2023) was an Indian judge who was the 26th Chief Justice of India. After serving as a judge in the Gujarat High Court, Ahmadi was appointed judge to the Supreme Court in 1988. He was then elevat ...

until 24 March,

Jagdish Sharan Verma Jagdish Sharan Verma (18 January 1933 – 22 April 2013) was an Indian jurist who served as the 27th Chief Justice of India from 25 March 1997 to 18 January 1998. He was the chairman of the National Human Rights Commission from 1999 to 2003, ...

Governors

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

– ** until 22 August:

Krishan Kant Krishan Kant (28 February 1927 – 27 July 2002) was an Indian politician who served as the vice president of India from 1997 until his death in 2002. Prior to his vice presidency, Kant was the governor of Andhra Pradesh from 1990 to 1997. He ...

** 22 August-24 November:

Gopala Ramanujam Gopala Ramanujam (1915–2001) was an Indian politician and co-founder of the Indian National Trade Union Congress. He was born on 28 May 1915 at Edircottal village, Ramanathapuram District in Tamil Nadu, India. He was a recipient of the third h ...

** starting 24 November:

C. Rangarajan Chakravarthi Rangarajan (born 1932) is an Indian economist, a former Member of Parliament and 19th governor of the Reserve Bank of India. He is the former chairman of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council; he resigned the day the UPA ...

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeast India. It was formed from the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and India declared it as a state on 20 February 1987. Itanagar is its capital and la ...

–

Mata Prasad Mata Prasad is a retired Indian Administrative Service officer. He was one of the first people from the Scheduled Castes to become an IAS officer. He is a former chairman of the Union Public Service Commission of India. He served as the chief ...

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

–

Loknath Mishra Lokanath Misra (22 November 1921 – 27 May 2009) was an Indian politician. He was a member of the Rajya Sabha. He was the Governor of Assam from 1991 to 1997 and held additional charge as Governor of Nagaland from 1992 to 1993. He died on 27 M ...

(until 1 September),

Srinivas Kumar Sinha Lieutenant General Srinivas Kumar Sinha, PVSM, ADC (7 January 1926 – 17 November 2016) was an Indian Army General who served as the Vice Chief of Army Staff. After his retirement, he served as Governor of the states of Jammu and Kashmir, ...

(starting 1 September) *

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

–

Mohammad Shafi Qureshi Mohammad Shafi Abbasi Qureshi (24 November 1928 – 28 August 2016) was an Indian politician and statesman from Kashmir and the founder of the Congress Party in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. Life He was born on 24 November 1928 in Ka ...

Goa Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...

– P.C. Alexander *

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

–

Krishna Pal Singh Krishnapal Singh (10 January 1922 – 27 September 1999) was an Indian activist, politician and a former Governor of Gujarat from Shahdol in Baghelkhand. His career began in the 1940s and ended in the 1990s. Early life In high school, he organi ...

Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...

–

Mahabir Prasad Mahaveer Prasad () (11 November 1939 – 28 November 2010) was an Indian politician. He stood for the 2004 Lok Sabha elections on the Indian National Congress ticket and until his death was a Member of Parliament for Bansgaon. He was the Unio ...

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

–

(until 25 July),

V. S. Ramadevi V. S. Ramadevi (15 January 1934 – 17 April 2013) was an Indian politician who was the first lady to become the 8th Governor of Karnataka and 9th Chief Election Commissioner of India from 26 November 1990 to 11 December 1990. She was the firs ...

(starting 25 July) *

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...

– K. V. Krishna Rao *

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

–

Khurshed Alam Khan Khurshed Alam Khan (5 February 1919 – 20 July 2013) was an Indian politician and a senior leader of the Indian National Congress political party. He was Governor of Karnataka from 1991 to 1999 and governor of Goa from 1989 to 1991. Before t ...

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

– Khurshid Alam Khan (until 25 January),

Sukhdev Singh Kang Sukhdev Singh Kang ( 15 May 1931 – 12 October 2012) was the fourteenth Governor of Kerala from 25 January 1997 to 18 April 2002. He served as a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court from 19 February 1979 till 23 October 1989 and was subs ...

(starting 25 January) *

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

–

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

– P.C. Alexander *

Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...

– O.N. Shrivastava *

Meghalaya Meghalaya (; "the abode of clouds") is a states and union territories of India, state in northeast India. Its capital is Shillong. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the Assam: the United Khasi Hills an ...

– M.M. Jacob *

Mizoram Mizoram is a states and union territories of India, state in northeastern India, with Aizawl as its Capital city, capital and largest city. It shares 722-kilometres (449 miles) of international borders with Bangladesh to the west, and Myanmar t ...

– P. R. Kyndiah *

Nagaland Nagaland () is a States and union territories of India, state in the northeast India, north-eastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south, and the Naga Sel ...

– Om Prakash Sharma *

Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...

– ** until 30 January:

** 30 January-12 February: K. V. Raghunatha Reddy ** 13 February-13 December:

** starting 13 December: K. V. Raghunatha Reddy *

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

– Bakshi Krishan Nath Chhibber *

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

–

Bali Ram Bhagat Bali Ram Bhagat (7 October 1922 – 2 January 2011) was an Indian politician and member of the Indian National Congress (INC). He has served as Member of Parliament (MP) in Lok Sabha representing Patna-cum-Shahabad from 1952 to 1957 and Sha ...

Sikkim Sikkim ( ; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Koshi Province of Nepal in the west, and West Bengal in the ...

– Chaudhary Randhir Singh *

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

–

(until 24 January),

M. Fathima Beevi M. Fathima Beevi (30 April 1927 – 23 November 2023) was an Indian judge who was a List of former justices of the Supreme Court of India, justice of the Supreme Court of India. Appointed to the apex Court in 1989, she became the first female ju ...

(starting 24 January) *

Tripura Tripura () is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a populat ...

–

Siddheswar Prasad Siddheshwar Prasad (19 January 1929 – 22 January 2023) was an Indian politician belonging to the Indian National Congress. He was elected to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India from the Nalanda Constituency of Bihar in t ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

–

Romesh Bhandari Romesh Bhandari (29 March 1928 – 7 September 2013) was an Indian diplomat and administrator. Bhandari, during his career, served in various positions, including as the Foreign Secretary, Lieutenant Governor of Delhi and the Andaman and Nico ...

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

– K. V. Raghunatha Reddy

Events

* National income - 15,452,939 million

January - March

* 7 February – An alliance of

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

and

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

nationalist parties wins a resounding victory over the

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

in state assembly elections in

. * 28 February – The government is strengthened by a daring, market friendly budget. * 13 March – India's Missionaries of Charity chooses Sister Nirmala to succeed

Mother Teresa Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu (born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, ; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa or Saint Mother Teresa, was an Albanian-Indian Catholic Church, Roman Catholic nun, founder of the Missionaries of ...

as its leader. * 19 March – The

Bahujan Samaj Party The Bahujan Samaj Party ( BSP) is a political party in India that was formed to represent Bahujans (literally means "community in majority"), referring to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes (OBC), along with Religious ...

(BSP), a powerful party, deserts its alliance with Congress in

to form a government with the

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's ...

(BJP). * 30 March – Congress withdraws support from the United Front, accusing Prime Minister

H.D. Deve Gowda Haradanahalli Doddegowda Deve Gowda (; born 18 May 1933) is an Indian politician who served as the prime minister of India from 1996 to 1997. He previously served as the chief minister of Karnataka from 1994 to 1996 and as a Member of Parliam ...

of poor leadership.

April - June

* 21 April –

, a new leader acceptable to Congress, is sworn in as prime minister. * 21 April – 1997 Raghopur Massacre took place in

. * 22 May – The 5.8 Jabalpur earthquake shook central India with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (''Severe''), killing 38–56 and injuring 1,000–1,500. * 7 June -

Brihadeeswarar temple fire Brihadeeswarar temple fire is a fire accident that occurred during the consecration of the Brihadeeswarar Temple on 7 June 1997 in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, India. The accident was caused by a spark that caught up the thatch. A stampede occurred du ...

. * June -

Jagmohan Dalmiya Jagmohan Dalmiya (30 May 1940 – 20 September 2015) was an Indian cricket administrator and businessman from the city of Kolkata. He was the President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India as well as the Cricket Association of Bengal. H ...

elected as the president of

International Cricket Council The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the global Sports governing body, governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from Australia, England, and South Africa. In 1965, the body wa ...

. * 30 June -

1997 Melavalavu massacre The 1997 Melavalavu massacre refers to the murder of a Panchayati raj, Panchayat President of the village and six other men of the Dalit community by dominant caste members in :ta:மேலவளவு ஊராட்சி, Melavalavu, Madurai ...

July - September

* 3 July –

Laloo Prasad Yadav Lalu Prasad (born 11 June 1948) is an Indian politician who served as the Chief Minister of Bihar, chief minister of Bihar from 1990 to 1997 with a brief interruption in 1995 and as the Railway Minister (India), union minister for Railways fro ...

is ousted as president of the

Janata Dal Janata Dal () was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha on 11 October 1988—the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Na ...

party. On 5 July he announces the formation of a new party called

Rashtriya Janata Dal The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav. The party's support base has traditionally been Other ...

. * 14 July – K.R. Narayanan is elected president, defeating

T.N. Seshan Tirunellai Narayana Iyer Seshan (15 May 1933 – 10 November 2019) was an Indian civil servant, bureaucrat who served with the Indian Administrative Service and as a politician. After serving in various positions in Madras and in various minist ...

. * 25 July – Laloo Prasad Yadav resigns as chief minister of Bihar after a warrant for his arrest, on charges relating to an animal fodder scandal, had been issued. He names his wife,

Rabri Devi Rabri Devihttp://ceobihar.nic.in/election/GeneralElection2014/PC20/S04-Bihar-20--May-2014%20(%20GEN%20)-3-RABRI%20DEVI.PDFhttps://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s3285e19f20beded7d215102b49d5c09a0/uploads/2023/05/2023051796.pdf ( Devanagri: राबड़ी ...

, as his successor and the first woman chief minister of Bihar. * 25 July – K.R. Narayanan is sworn in as India's 10th president and the first member of the Dalit caste to hold this office. * 16 August –

is elected vice president. * 5 September –

Mother Teresa of Calcutta Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu (born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, ; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa or Saint Mother Teresa, was an Albanian-Indian Catholic Church, Roman Catholic nun, founder of the Missionaries of ...

dies of heart failure in

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

. * 9 September – 49 senior Hindu politicians and religious figures are charged with conspiracy and incitement to riot for their alleged role in the sacking of the

Babri mosque The Babri Masjid (ISO: Bābarī Masjida; meaning ''Mosque of Babur'') was a mosque located in Ayodhya, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It was claimed that the mosque was built upon the site of Ram Janmabhoomi, the legendary birthplace ...

Ayodhya Ayodhya () is a city situated on the banks of the Sarayu river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ayodhya district as well as the Ayodhya division of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ayodhya became th ...

in 1992.

October - December

* 1 October – Heavy rainfall in Bangalore. * 12–18 October –

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

pays a state visit to India. * 14 October -

Arundhati Roy Suzanna Arundhati Roy (; born 24 November 1961) is an Indian author best known for her novel ''The God of Small Things'' (1997), which won the Booker Prize for Fiction in 1997 and became the best-selling book by a non-expatriate Indian author. ...

wins

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a prestigious literary award conferred each year for the best single work of sustained fiction written in the English language, wh ...

for her debut novel

The God of Small Things ''The God of Small Things'' is a domestic fiction written by the Indian author Arundhati Roy. It is a story about childhood experiences of the fraternal twins whose lives are destroyed by the "Love Laws" prevalent in the 1960s in Kerala, Ind ...

. * 21 October – Violence erupts in the

state assembly during a vote of confidence on the Hindu nationalist state government. Deputies trade blows on the floor of the assembly in the state capital of

Lucknow Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...

and hurl chairs and microphones at each other. A dozen lawmakers are injured and several journalists are also hurt. The BJP's one-month-old government headed by chief minister

Kalyan Singh Kalyan Singh (5 January 1932 – 21 August 2021) was an Indian politician and a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He served twice as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and as a Member of Parliament. He was the Chief minister of Utta ...

lost key support in a hung assembly on 19 October when the

withdrew its support, plunging India's most populous state into a political crisis. The government wins the confidence vote after opposition members walk out in protest against the violence in the hall. Federal rule over the state is imposed the same day, but later cancelled. * 20 November – Congress threatens to withdraw support for the United Front if it does not drop the regional

Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (; ; DMK) is an Indian political party based in the state of Tamil Nadu, where it is currently the ruling party, and the union territory of Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry, where it is currently the main ...

(DMK) party from the government after the DMK was linked by an investigative panel to Sri Lankan separatists blamed for the killing of

Rajiv Gandhi Rajiv Gandhi (20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian statesman and pilot who served as the prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the Assassination of Indira Gandhi, assassination of his mother, then–prime ...

. * 21 November – The 6.1 Chittagong earthquake shook the Bangladesh-India-Myanmar border region, killing 23 and injuring 200. * 26 November – The United Front rejects the Congress demand to expel the DMK. * 28 November – Prime Minister

resigns after the Congress party withdrew support from his government. * 4 December – The president orders mid-term elections. * 29 December –

Sonia Gandhi Sonia Gandhi (, ; ; born 9 December 1946) is an Indian politician. She is the longest-serving president of the Indian National Congress, a big-tent liberal political party, which has governed India for most of its post-independence history. ...

, Italian-born widow of Rajiv Gandhi, announces her decision to join the Congress election campaign.

Law

* TRAI (telecom regulator) is established.

Births

*4 Jan -

Nimisha Sajayan Nimisha Sajayan is an Indian actress who predominately works in Malayalam films apart from Tamil and Hindi films. Nimisha made her acting debut with the film ''Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum'' directed by Dileesh Pothan. She won the Kerala State ...

, actress *17 January -

Charithra Chandran Charithra Surya Chandran (; born 17 January 1997) is a British actress. She is known for her roles in the Amazon spy thriller series '' Alex Rider'' (2021), the second series of the Netflix period drama ''Bridgerton'' (2022), the teen romanti ...

, english actress * Janhvi Kapoor snapped at the press show of Bawaal

6 March -

Janhvi Kapoor Janhvi Kapoor (born 6 March 1997) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi and Telugu language, Telugu films. Born to film actress Sridevi and producer Boney Kapoor, she made her acting debut in 2018 with the romantic drama ''Dhadak'', which w ...

, actress *9 March –

Darsheel Safary Darsheel Safary (born 9 March 1997) is an Indian actor who appears in Hindi, Gujarati films and television. Safary made his film debut with the leading role of a dyslexic student in Aamir Khan's directorial debut, the critically acclaimed drama ...

, actor *28 March -

Anu Emmanuel Anu Emmanuel (; born 28 March 1997) is an American actress of Indian descent who primarily works in Telugu films along with Tamil and Malayalam films. Emmanuel is a recipient of a Producers Guild Film Award. After working as a child artist in ...

, actress *6 April –

Gaurav Bajaj Gaurav Bajaj is an Indian film actor and model.- He was born on 6 April 1997. He has appeared in commercials and in movies such as '' Phir Kabhi'', ''Dahek: A Restless Mind'', ''Kirkit'' '', Vroom'' and Balika Vadhu ''Balika Vadhu'' () i ...

, actor *8 April – Sayantan Das, chess player *12 April –

Ulka Gupta Ulka Gupta (born 12 April 1997) is an Indian actress who predominantly works in Hindi and Telugu films and television. She is popularly known as Manu, as she played the role of Manu (the young Rani Lakshmibai) in the Zee TV soap '' Jhansi Ki R ...

, actress *22 April – Parvathy Soman, singer *14 May –

Manushi Chhillar Manushi Chhillar (born 14 May 1997) is an Indian actress, model and the winner of Miss World 2017 pageant. She represented her state of Haryana at the Femina Miss India 2017 pageant and won the title of Femina Miss India, Femina Miss India Wor ...

, model, actress (miss world 2017) *19 June – Roshan Sebastian, singer *

20 June –

Bhavya Gandhi Bhavya Gandhi (born 20 June 1997) is an Indian actor who mainly works in Hindi television and Gujarati films. He is best known for his portrayal of Tipendra "Tapu" Jethalal Gada in the Indian sitcom and latest role in ''Pushpa Impossible (TV ...

, actor. *21 June -

Faria Abdullah Faria Abdullah (born 21 June 1997) is an Indian actress who works in Telugu films. She was a theatre artiste, and debuted in films with '' Jathi Ratnalu'' (2021) and had a major breakthrough for her role ''Chiti''. Faria is a recipient of a G ...

, actress and theatre artiste *22 June -

Banita Sandhu Banita Sandhu (born 22 June 1997) is a Welsh actress. Known for her work in Indian cinema, she made her film debut with the 2018 Hindi-language film ''October'', going on to star in the Tamil-language production '' Adithya Varma'' and the CW ser ...

, actress *7 July -

Tanya Maniktala Tanya Maniktala (born 7 July 1997) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films and series. She became known for her leading roles in the series ''Flames'' (2018) and ''A Suitable Boy'' (2020). She has since featured in the action film ''Kill' ...

, actress *1 August -

Medha Shankr Medha Shankr (born 1 August 1999) is an Indian actress who is known for her works in Hindi films. Shankr made her acting debut with the British miniseries '' Beecham House'' (2019) and followed it with few supporting parts. She achieved her bre ...

, actress *12 August -

Sayyeshaa Sayyeshaa Saigal (born 12 August 1997), known mononymously as Sayyeshaa, is an Indian actress who primarily works in Tamil cinema, Tamil films. She made her acting debut with the Telugu film ''Akhil (film), Akhil'' (2015), for which she receive ...

, actress. *12 August -

Ashi Singh Ashi Singh is an Indian actress, best known for her portrayal of Yasmine in ''Aladdin – Naam Toh Suna Hoga'', for her dual portrayal of Meet Hooda and Sumeet Sangwan in '' Meet: Badlegi Duniya Ki Reet'' and Naina Agarwal in '' Yeh Un Dinon Ki ...

, actress *24 August -

Deepti Sharma Deepti Sharma (born 24 August 1997) is an Indian cricketer who plays for Uttar Pradesh, UP Warriorz, London Spirit, Melbourne Stars and India. She is an all-rounder who bats left-handed and bowls right-arm off break. As of 2018, she was ranke ...

, cricketer *14 September –

Pragathi Guruprasad Pragathy Guruprasad is a Singaporean-American playback singer who has worked in Indian Tamil-language films. Brought up in Fremont, California, she finished as a runner-up in the '' Airtel Super Singer Junior 3'' show, which aired from October ...

, singer *2 October –

Lovlina Borgohain Lovlina Borgohain (born 2 October 1997) is an Indian boxer. She won a bronze medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in the women's welterweight event, becoming only the third Indian boxer to win a medal at the Olympics. She won gold medal at 2023 IB ...

, Indian boxer and an Olympic medal winner. *4 October –

Rishabh Pant Rishabh Pant (; born 4 October 1997) is an Indian international cricketer who plays for the Indian cricket team as a wicket-keeper batter. He is currently the vice captain of Indian cricket team in the Test format. He captains and plays for th ...

, cricketer *11 October –

Tathoi Deb Tathoi Deb (born Sharanya Deb) is an Indian actress, dancer and television presenter. She is one of the most popular former child actresses in Bengali cinema. Biography Tathoi was born in Kolkata, West Bengal to Late Lala Biswajit Deb and Jam ...

, actor and director *12 October – Rinku Singh, cricketer *14 October -

Dushara Vijayan Dushara Vijayan (born 14 October 1997) is an Indian actress who is known for her works in Tamil cinema. She made her debut in the Tamil film '' Bodhai Yeri Budhi Maari'' (2019), and gained recognition for her performances in '' Sarpatta Paramba ...

, actress *22 October –

Sarfaraz Khan Sarfarāz Khān ( 1700 – 29 April 1740), born ''Mīrza Asadullāh'', was a Nawab of Bengal. Sarfaraz Khan's maternal grandfather, Nawab Murshid Quli Khan of Bengal (Bengal, Bihar and Orissa) nominated him as the direct heir to him as there ...

, cricketer *26 October - Femina George, actress *11 November –

Mayank Markande Mayank Markande (born 11 November 1997) is an Indian cricketer who plays for Punjab in domestic cricket and Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League. He made his international debut for the India cricket team in February 2019. Markande ...

, cricketer *28 November - Alaya F, actress *5 December –

Khaleel Ahmed Khaleel Khursheed Ahmed (; born 5 December 1997) is an Indian international cricketer. He made his debut for Indian cricket team The India men's national cricket team, also known as Men in Blue, represents India in international cricke ...

, cricketer *12 December –

Ravi Kumar Dahiya Ravi Kumar Dahiya (born 12 December 1997), also known as Ravi Kumar or Ravi Dahiya, is an Indian freestyle wrestler who won a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the 57 kg category. Dahiya is also a bronze medallist from 2019 World Wres ...

, Indian freestyle wrestler who won a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the 57 kg category. *24 December –

Neeraj Chopra Lieutenant colonel, Honorary Lieutenant Colonel Neeraj Chopra (born 24 December 1997) is an Indian track and field athlete. Considered as one of the greatest javelin thrower, javelin throwers of all time, he's a double medalist at the Olympi ...

, Indian army, 2021 Olympics Gold medalist in Javelin throw

Full date unknown

Alka Ajith Alka Ajith is an Indian playback singer, best known for winning season 2 of ''Super Singer Junior season 2, Airtel Super Singer Junior'', a Tamil language music competition reality TV show broadcast on Vijay TV. She was awarded the Jaycey Founda ...

, singer *

Shriya Sharma Shriya Sharma (born 1997) is an Indian actress, model and advocate who has worked in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu films. She is known for playing the younger version of Sneha Basu in the television series ''Kasautii Zindagi Kay'' which won her the ...

, actress and model

Deaths

*28 January – Palani Baba, fundamentalist Islamist politician.Killing of Palani Baba sparks off communal flare-up in Tamil Nadu
/ref> *23 June –

Acharya Tulsi Acharya Tulsi (20 October 1914 – 23 June 1997) was a prominent Jain religious leader. He was the founder of the Anuvrata movement and the Jain Vishva Bharti Institute, Ladnun, and the author of over one hundred books. Acharya Mahapragya, ...

, 9th Acharya of the Shwetambar Terapanth sect of Jainism (b. 1914) *5 September -

*9 December – K. Shivaram Karanth, writer, social activist, environmentalist,

Yakshagana Yakshagana is a traditional theatre, found in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Kasaragod district and Uttara Kannada, Shimoga and western parts of Chikmagalur district, Chikmagalur districts, in the state of Karnataka and in Kasaragod district in Keral ...

artist, movie maker and thinker (b. 1902). * Anup Kumar, actor (b. 1932).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1997 In India

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Years of the 20th century in India