Lakshmi Shankar, born in 1926, is a Hindustani classical vocalist who has also tried her hand at playback singing in Hindi films.

Though her career began as a dancer in Uday Shankar’s troupe in Madras, she later took to music following a bout of illness when she was forced to give up dance. Hailing from the Patiala Gharana, she trained in Hindustani classical under Ustad Abdul Rehman Khan for years together and also with Pandit Ravi Shankar. She later married Uday Shankar and Ravi Shankar’s brother, Rajendra Shankar. In the film industry, she has worked with music directors like Madan Mohan, Mohammad Shafi, Alla Rakha, Ram Kadam, Bipin-Babul, Sapan-Jagmohan, Vasant Desai and Jaidev.