Renowned music director Ravi Shankar Sharma, known more commonly by his first name only, Ravi came from a humble background. He is a fine exemplar of how passion and talent can overcome all obstacles. Born on 3 March, 1926 in Delhi, young Ravi learned music from his father who had profound knowledge of classical bhajans. He worked as an electrician to support his famiy and learned to play the harmonium on his own.

After much struggle, in 1950 he shifted to Bombay aspiring to become a professional singer. In his initial days in the city, he was forced to live on the streets and would sleep at the Malad railway station. It was only in 1952 that Ravi was discovered by singer Hemant Kumar who gave him the opportunity to sing backing vocals in Vande Mataram from the film Anand Math (1952). However, he didn’t witness real success until 1960. He received popular award nominations for films like Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960), Do Badan (1966), Humraaz (1967), Ankhen (1968), and Nikaah (1982). Some of his popular songs include “Aaj Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai”, “Babul Ki Duyaen Leti Ja”, “Doli Chadh Ke Dulhan Sasural Chali” and “Mere Yaar Bana Ke Dulha”.

Ravi was one of the few music directors who shaped the career of Asha Bhosle with hit songs like “Tora Man Darpan” and “Sun Le Pukar Aai”. He also played an instrumental role in making Mahendra Kapoor a popular singer in the Hindi film industry. After a successful career in Hindi cinema in the 1960s, he took a long break after 1970 till 1982. He then came back with the music for the film Nikaah (1982), and one of the film's songs “Dil ke Armaan Ansooyon Mein” sung by Salma Agha won her the Filmfare Best Female Playback Award. After that, he worked with only a few more Hindi films due to his focus on Malayalam cinema. One of his last Hindi film projects was Ek Alag Mausam (2003).

Apart from the Hindi film industry, he also composed music for Malayalam films, credited as Bombay Ravi. He worked a lot with the eminent Malayalam film director Hariharan, who also played a very big role in coaxing Ravi for his comeback.  Ravi was a constant in Hariharan’s films and their team was considered as one of the best ever in the Malayalam film industry.

He passed away on 7 March 2012 at the age of 86.