Vandana Chavan was born in Pune, where she spent her early childhood. Her father, the late Vijayarao Mohite was a veteran lawyer and her mother Jayashree Mohite retired as a part-time lecturer in law. She is married to Hemant Chavan, a prominent lawyer. Her sister Vinita Kamte was married to the late Ashok Kamte, a martyr in the 26/11 Mumbai attack. Her other sister, Justice Revati Mohite-Dere is a distinguished lawyer who was subsequently elevated as a judge of the Hon'ble Bombay High Court.

She was elected mayor of Pune for the period of March 1997 – 1998. In that period she was Vice-Chairperson of All India Council of Mayors and also she was Chairperson of Maharashtra State Mayor, President and Councillors Organisation.^[2] As mayor, she incorporated the concept of the Bio Diversity Park (BDP) into the development plan of the fringe villages, amid resistance from within and outside her party. Suresh Kalmadi who initially mentored her and gave her a break in politics, Chavan preferred to shift to the NCP.

1. Law of Cruelty, Abetment of Suicide and Dowry Death (Co-author), 1993.
2. Green India-Clean India, Swapna Udyachi-Sundar Jagachi (a reference book in Marathi on climate change), 2011.^[3]