Raftaar

Dilin Nair (born 16 November 1988), better known by his stage name Raftaar, is an Indian rapper, lyricist, music producer, composer, dancer, actor and TV personality associated with Hindi, Punjabi and Haryanvi music. He is among the first rappers in India to break into the mainstream music industry.

Early and personal life

Kalathil Kuzhiyil Devadasan Dilin Nair was born on 16 November 1988 to a Delhi-based Malayali couple in Trivandrum (now Thiruvananthapuram), Kerala. Raftaar married Komal Vohra, the sister of Indian television actors Karan Vohra and Kunal Vohra, in December 2016. They filed for a divorce in 2020 and have been living separately. The legal proceedings were delayed due to COVID-pandemic and were finalised on 6 October 2022.

On 31 January 2025, Raftaar married fashion stylist, actress, model Manraj Jawanda in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala in traditional Malayali and Sikh wedding ceremonies.

Career

Starting his career as a dancer, Raftaar (then known as Max) participated in a reality TV show Dance India Dance in 2011, in 'DID Double' along with a friend named Manik. He began his career in rap in 2008 with Lil Golu and Ikka, recording songs and uploading them on social sites mainly Orkut. He, Lil Golu and Ikka then started working with Yo Yo Honey Singh as a part of the "Mafia Mundeer" group. Raftaar later split from the group due to credit-related problems, most notably for the track "Dope Shope" which Raftaar claims writing the rap part. He also appeared in the music video for a few seconds and alleged that his scenes were also cut. He then formed a group 'The Titans' with Badshah and Sachit Takkar (Sachh). They produced many songs together in the Punjabi music industry and Bollywood. He was supported by Ankit Khanna, who introduced him to the Punjabi music band RDB, who then signed him onto their label, Three Records. Soon after the split between the RDB members, Raftaar joined the group's member Manjeet Ral (now known as Manj Musik). He started his solo career in 2016 after getting signed to Zee Music Company.

Raftaar became known after releasing his song "Swag Mera Desi" in 2013 with Manj Musik. The line "Ab yeh karke dikhao" () from the song was interpreted as a subliminal directed towards fellow rapper Yo Yo Honey Singh, who used the phrase in his song "Party With The Bhoothnath" which led to a dispute between the two rappers in media. "Swag Mera Desi" won Best Urban Song at the Brit Asia TV Music Awards in 2014.

In 2017, Raftaar debuted in the Bengali music industry through the film ''One'' which featured singer Vishal Dadlani and Raftaar. In the same year, he founded the record label KALAMKAAR, alongside Ankit Khanna, signing a variety of acts, such as KR$NA, Rashmeet Kaur, Deep Kalsi, Karma, Yunan and Harjas Harjaayi. He also produced and rapped a song for the ''Chaamp'' soundtrack. Raftaar has collaborated with Varun Dhawan for the second edition of Breezer Vivid Shuffle.

In 2019, he started judging the reality shows ''MTV Hustle'', ''Dance India Dance'' and '' Roadies,'' and was also seen as a guest judge on 2 episodes of '' India's Got Latent'' in 2024.

Discography

Albums

* ''Zero To Infinity'' (2018)
* ''Mr. Nair'' (2020)

EPs and Mixtapes

* ''WTF Mixtape: Vol. 1 (2013-14)'' (unreleased)
* ''BAR'ISH EP'' (2020–21) (unreleased)
* ''HARD DRIVE Vol.1'' ''(EP)'' (2022)
* ''PRAA'' ''(EP)'' (2023)
* ''HARD DRIVE Vol.2'' ''(EP)'' (2024)

Singles and collaborations

Film music

Television roles

References

Explanatory notes

Citations

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Raftaar
Living people
Indian rappers
Rappers from Delhi
Singers from Delhi
Singers from Thiruvananthapuram
21st-century Indian singers
21st-century Indian male singers
Malayali people
1988 births
Rappers from Kerala