12 minutes agoAuthor: Shaily Acharya
Controversy and Samay Raina seem to go hand in hand. His latest episode of India’s Got Latent has once again landed him in the headlines, with alleged jokes about Biharis and Kashmiri Pandits drawing criticism and backlash.
But beyond the controversies that keep him in the spotlight, there is also a lesser-known side to Samay, his personal life and Kashmiri roots.
So, let’s take a look at his journey and background in our weekly show, Flashback Friday.
Born in Kashmir, but forced to leave home
Samay Raina was born in 1997 into a Kashmiri family. His parents had married in Kashmir and lived there in the early 1990s. His father worked as a news reporter for DD Kashmir.
However, the growing militancy and violence in the Valley changed the family’s life. They were forced to leave Kashmir in 1991.
The family later returned to the Valley in 1996, hoping to rebuild their life. But they had to leave again after a shooting incident at their home in 1998.
This time, the family moved to Hyderabad in search of safety and stability.
Graphic Credit: Anas.
Faced bullying in school
After moving around, Samay eventually grew up in Hyderabad. His father worked extremely hard to provide him with a good education.
He eventually managed to get Samay admitted to the prestigious Hyderabad Public School, commonly known as HPS.
But getting into a reputed school did not mean that Samay suddenly found his place there.
In Still Alive, Samay Raina shares several personal anecdotes from his childhood and lesser-known life experiences. He has spoken about being bullied throughout his school years and feeling like an outsider. He struggled to fit into established groups and often felt like the “different kid” who did not belong.
Those experiences became an important part of his childhood. The feeling of being an outsider, observing people from the sidelines and trying to understand where he fitted in would later become an interesting part of his personality as a comedian.
Engineering was his plan, until comedy happened
Like many young people, Samay initially appeared to be heading towards a conventional career. He pursued engineering, but eventually discovered stand-up comedy.
He started performing at open mics and smaller venues, slowly finding his feet on stage.
The big breakthrough came in 2019 when he won Comicstaan Season 2 alongside Aakash Gupta.
The victory introduced him to a much larger audience and established him as one of the promising young comedians in India.
How did he step into comedy, his first stage show?
Like many comedians, he spent years performing at open mics and small venues. As an adult, Samay transitioned into professional stand-up comedy. He emphasizes that the persona he displays on the Internet is a carefully crafted character rather than his true self.
His breakthrough finally arrived in 2019 when he won Comicstaan Season 2 alongside Aakash Gupta. The win introduced him to a national audience and established him as one of the country’s most promising young comics. At that point, Samay seemed destined for a traditional stand-up career. Then the pandemic changed everything.
At the time, it seemed that Samay was headed towards a fairly traditional stand-up comedy career.
Then, the pandemic changed everything.
When comedy stopped, he became chess streamer
With live comedy coming to a halt during the Covid-19 lockdown, Samay turned to YouTube and began streaming chess.
What started as something to do during lockdown soon became a major part of his career.
Samay brought an unusual approach to chess content. Instead of presenting the game only as a serious sport, he mixed it with comedy, conversations and internet culture.
He collaborated with some of the biggest names in chess, including Viswanathan Anand, Magnus Carlsen, Garry Kasparov and Vladimir Kramnik.
His association with ChessBase India co-founder Sagar Shah also helped him explore the world of professional chess.
Through his streams and Comedians on Board tournaments, Samay helped introduce chess to a younger digital audience.
In the process, he himself became one of the most recognisable chess-content creators in India.
From chess to KBC and a new internet persona
Samay’s growing popularity eventually took him to Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC).
But he later reflected on how different his public image on the show was from the persona audiences knew online.
He has described his internet personality as something he consciously created — a character that allowed him to entertain people while keeping parts of his real self private.
That contrast between the person on screen and the person behind the screen became an important part of his later reflections on fame and public perception.
Samay’s biggest career shift came with India’s Got Latent
The show’s interactive and unpredictable format quickly connected with the internet audience. It became a massive digital phenomenon and turned Samay into one of the most talked-about creators in the country.
But with massive popularity came something else, intense scrutiny.
The show repeatedly found itself at the centre of controversies, with one of the biggest storms involving an episode featuring YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia, popularly known as BeerBiceps.
The controversy surrounding India’s Got Latent
The episode triggered widespread outrage and legal action. The content drew heavy criticism on social media and from sections of the public.
Multiple complaints and FIRs were filed in different states. Samay faced intense media scrutiny over the episode.
He was in the US on tour when the controversy escalated and later spoke about experiencing intense anxiety and guilt.
He worried about the impact of the controversy on his family and fellow creators.
For someone who had built his career around being unapologetically himself, the episode forced Samay to confront the darker side of internet fame.
Graphic Credit: Anas.
His parents became his emotional anchor
One of the most personal parts of Samay’s reflections has been about his relationship with his parents, particularly his father.
While Samay was overwhelmed by the controversy, his father remained calm. His own experiences of living through conflict and leaving Kashmir gave him a very different perspective on adversity.
For Samay, the comparison was striking
What felt like a devastating professional crisis to him was, in his father’s eyes, something that could eventually be overcome, especially when compared with the hardships the family had already survived.
His father’s sacrifices also extended far beyond the controversy. Samay has spoken about how hard his father worked for years to provide him with a good education and a better life.
That realisation appears to have changed how Samay looked at both his career and his relationship with his parents.
Another controversy puts him back in the headlines
Samay is once again in the news following the latest episode of India’s Got Latent, where his exchange with comedian Sharon Verma reportedly included jokes about their roots.
The episode has drawn criticism, particularly over alleged jokes involving Biharis and Kashmiri Pandits.
Why is Samay facing criticism again?
The jokes have sparked backlash on social media.
Critics have questioned whether the humour crossed a line.
His comments have once again brought his own Kashmiri roots into the conversation.
The controversy has renewed debate around the limits of edgy comedy and the responsibility of creators with large online audiences.
For Samay, being at the centre of controversy is hardly new. But each controversy has also added another layer to the public image of a comedian who has built his career around pushing boundaries.
What comes next for Samay?
Despite the controversies, Samay has continued to build his career across several platforms.
His work spans stand-up comedy, YouTube, chess content, brand collaborations and digital ventures. Media reports have also placed his estimated net worth in the range of ₹140 crore to ₹215 crore, although these figures are not officially confirmed.
More importantly, Samay appears to have arrived at a different understanding of fame.
After experiencing the anxiety and pressure that came with the India’s Got Latent controversy, he has spoken about valuing authenticity over public validation and wanting to create content on his own terms.
From a child who was forced to leave Kashmir, to a boy who struggled with bullying, to an engineering student who found comedy, a comedian who found chess, and a creator who built a massive internet show Samay Raina has repeatedly reinvented himself.
And perhaps that is the simplest way to describe his journey, as he himself says “Main Samay Hoon.”
