Kaempferia galanga L. belonging to the family Zingiberaceae is an endangered medicinal plant with potent medicinal activities. The leaves, rhizome and root tubers of the plant possess a number of medicinal applications. The plant is economically important and is over exploited to the extent that there is always scarcity of propagating material (rhizomes) which is the consumable part too. The present review provides broad information of Kaempferia galanga throwing light on its current status, ethnobotany, phytochemistry and pharmacology. Extracts of Kaempferia galanga have anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anti-diarrheal, anti-bacterial, sedative, cytotoxic, insecticidal and anthelmintic properties which are reported here.