Puri (surname)

Puri is a Punjabi Khatri surname of derived from a Suryavanshi Indo-Aryan Puru tribe of King Porus.

The Dictionary of American Family Names notes that puri means a small town in Punjabi but it is uncertain whether this is related to the surname. Another theory derives it from the Purus, the mythological Indo-Aryan tribe.

Buddha Prakash, professor of history and of Ancient Indian history, culture and archaeology, director of the Institute of Indic Studies, said:

Bankers

• Aditya Puri, managing director, HDFC Bank Limited
• K. R. Puri, former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, former MD at LIC India

Businessmen and managers

• Amit Puri (born 1979), Indian chef and entrepreneur
• Aroon Purie (born 1944), Indian businessman and the founder & editor in chief of India Today
• Deepak Puri, founder of Moser Baer
• Madhabi Puri (born 1965), chairperson of the securities regulatory body Securities and Exchange Board of India
• Ratul Puri (born 1972), chairman of the board of directors of Hindustan Power

Film actors

• Aarti Puri (born 1985), Indian actress and model
• Akanksha Puri, Indian actress and model
• Amrish Puri (1932–2005), Bollywood and Hollywood film actor
• Amrita Puri (born 1983), Bollywood film actress
• Chaman Puri (1914–1988), Indian actor
• Koel Purie, Indian actress, producer and TV presenter
• Madan Puri (1915–1985), Bollywood film actor
• Mayur Puri, Indian screenwriter, lyricist, actor and film-maker
• Neeta Puri, Indian actress and model
• Om Puri (1950–2017), Bollywood and Hollywood film actor
• Pearl V Puri (born 1989), Indian television actor
• Preeti Puri, Indian actress
• Rajesh Puri, Indian actor
• Satyajeet Puri (born 1960), Indian actor
• Shashi Puri, Indian actor
• Vardhan Puri (born 1990), Indian actor
• Vibhu Puri (born 1980), Indian film director, writer and lyricist

Independence activists and martyrs

• Ram Nath Puri (1881–1974), Indian freedom fighter best known as the editor of Circular-i-Azadi
• Haqiqat Rai Puri (1720–1734), 14 year old martyr

Journalists and authors

• Balraj Puri (1928–2014), Journalist, writer and human rights activist
• Belle Puri, Canadian journalist
• Kailash Puri (1925–2017), Indian writer, poet and yoga teacher
• Kavita Puri, British journalist, radio broadcaster, and author
• Narottam Puri (born 1946), Indian sports journalist and broadcaster
• Pratima Puri (died 2007), Indian journalist best known for being Doordarshan's first newsreader
• Rajinder Puri (1934–2015), Indian cartoonist, veteran columnist and political activist

Politicians

• Hardeep Singh Puri (born 1952), Indian cabinet minister
• Lakshmi Puri (born 1952), Indian diplomat and former assistant secretary-general at the United Nations and the former deputy executive director of UN Women.
• Manjeev Singh Puri (born 1959), Indian civil servant of the Indian Foreign Service cadre and the former Ambassador of India to Nepal
• Naresh Puri (born 1970), Indian politician
• Raghunath Sahai Puri (1938–2007), Indian politician and Minister for Housing & Urban Development in Punjab Government
• Ranjeev Puri (born 1984), American state representative

Singers

• Sanam Puri, lead vocalist of the independent music band SANAM, and Bollywood singer
• Samar Puri, guitarist in the band SANAM, popularly known as 'Flying Guitarist'; the sibling of Sanam Puri

Science and academia

• Baij Nath Puri (1916–1996), Indian historian and author
• Harish Puri (born 1938), Indian political scientist and historian
• Ishwar Puri (born 1959), Indian-American and Canadian scientist, engineer, and academic
• Jyoti Puri, professor of sociology at Simmons University
• Madan Lal Puri (born 1929), Indian-American mathematician and statistician
• Manju Puri, Indian-American economics professor at Duke University and editor at the Review of Financial Studies. Currently he is the director of the American Finance Association.
• Munish Chander Puri (1939–2005), professor emeritus of mathematics at IIT Delhi
• Neel Kamal Puri (born 1956), Indian author and teacher
• Ruchir Puri, Indian American scientist
• Sanjay Puri (born 1961), Indian statistical physicist

Spirituality

• Harbhajan Singh Puri (1929–2004), spiritual director of the 3HO (Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization)

Sports

• Abhinav Puri (born 1944), Indian cricketer
• Devraj Puri (1916–1971), Indian cricketer
• Gaurav Puri (born 1991), Indian cricketer
• Indu Puri (born 1953), Indian table tennis player
• Rishi Puri, Indian Sudoku champion
• Sangeeta Puri (born 1979), Indian Olympic swimmer
• Sunita Puri (died 2020), Indian field hockey player

Army

See also

• List of Khatris

References