Nijalingappa was born on 10 December 1902 to a middle class family in Haluvagalu, a small village in Bellary, Karnataka (then in the Madras Presidency of British India). His father, a small businessman, died when Nijalingappa was five; his mother was a homemaker. The family were Lingayat Hindus; Nijalingappa's mother was noted as a devout worshipper of Shiva. Nijalingappa later recalled that his "father's ancestors were all rich profligates" and that they "dissipated their wealth on gambling, drinking and womanising." He added that his "mother's father helped parents, but [his family were still very poor."