Harish Shankar was born on March 31, 1979 in Karimnagar, Telangana, India.

Harish Shankar is an Indian film director and screenwriter known for his works exclusively in Telugu cinema and theater. He made his directorial debut with Shock in 2006, produced by Ram Gopal Varma. Some of his notable films include Mirapakay (2011), Gabbar Singh (2012) for which he received the SIIMA Award and CineMAA Award for Best Director, Ramayya Vasthavayya (2013), and DJ: Duvvada Jagannadham (2017).

Shankar was born into a Telugu Brahmin family and was brought up in BHEL Township, Hyderabad. He has a younger brother, Vishnu Prasad, and a younger sister. He studied at Osmania University[2]. Shankar started stage acting with Seeta Nilayam and later ventured into filmmaking.