If you follow stand-up comedy, it is almost impossible to miss Kashmiri stand-up comedian Samay Raina who has made a name for himself by co-winning the second season of Comicstaan. His popularity soared during the COVID-19 pandemic when he transformed chess, often seen as an intellectual pursuit, into an engaging, humorous spectacle through his YouTube streams, featuring Viswanathan Anand and Magnus Carlsen.
Over the years, Raina has become a pretty well-known sensation in the entertainment industry, and taking advantage of this, he has also become quite renowned for various philanthropic works.
In This article will cover various matters of interest in Samay Raina’s age, height, net worth, etc.
Samay Raina: Biography
Samay Raina is an Indian Stand-up Comedian, YouTuber and a chess enthusiast. He is considered to be a secular Kashmiri Pandit as he was born in Jammu, J&K on 26 October 1997. His journey from being a small-town Kashmiri boy with a rough upbringing to becoming a nationally famous star has been quite inspiring.
| Full Name | Samay Raina |
| Birthdate | 26th October 1997 |
| Age | 27 years old |
| Place of Birth | Jammu, J&K |
| Career | Stand-up Comedian YouTuber |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Ethnicity | Kashmiri Pandit |
| Net Worth | INR 140 crores (unconfirmed) |
| Spouse | Unmarried |
Samay Raina Age, Height and Physical Stats
Samay Raina is currently 27 years old. He will be turning 28 this year 2025, and his zodiac sign is Scorpio. Samay stands at 5 feet 6 inches, which is equivalent to 168 cm. He has a complementary weight of 82 kg. He has dark brown eyes and black hair to complement his features.
| Height | 5 feet 6 inches (168 cm) |
| Weight | 82 kg |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
Samay Raina Family Members
Samay Raina father name is Rajesh Raina, who worked as a journalist with media outlets like Doordarshan, and to Sweeti Raina, a homemaker, who had to leave her job to raise him. He was raised as an only child, and this meant that Samay received immense love and support and nurturing from both parents. They had to move from Jammu to Delhi, and then later settled in Hyderabad due to the Kashmiri Pandit exodus.
| Father Name | Rajesh Raina (Journalist) |
| Mother Name | Sweeti Raina (Homemaker) |
| Siblings | None |
Early Life and Struggles
Samay grew up in a conservative Kashmiri Pandit family, and he had to face challenges of a turbulent socio-political environment in Jammu, especially during the Kashmiri Pandit exodus. His family had to relocate multiple times before eventually settling in Hyderabad. Raina shared that he was bullied as a child, which ultimately shaped his resilience and humor.
Educational Qualification
Like any child, Raina’s education played an important role in his life both in terms of academics and in his career. He studied at Hyderabad Public School for his primary education, and also at Ramdevi Public School. After completing his schooling, Raina pursued a Bachelor’s degree in Printing Engineering from Pune Vidhyarthi Griha’s College of Engineering and Technology, located in Pune. Although it was engineering that Raina was attached to, he realized very quickly during his college years that his true love lay elsewhere – in comedy.
| Primary Education | Hyderabad Public School; Ramdevi Public School |
| College | Pune Vidyarthi Griha College of Engineering and Technology |
| Degree | Bachelor’s in Engineering |
Samay Raina Relationship with Sahiba Bali (Rumours)
Samay Raina is unmarried as of 2025 and he has also kept his personal life quite private as he prefers to keep it out of social media buzz. However, there have been some speculations about his relationship status – especially when it was linked to Sahiba Bali, who worked as a Brand Manager and Associate Director of Marketing at Zomato. Their dating rumors kicked in when the duo were seen in a series of YouTube videos and they also looked rather cute and comfortable with each other’s presence – despite them becoming a popular duo in the meme culture, as Raina’s dark jokes and Bali’s reactions went viral over social media. However, both of them have clarified that their relationship is purely platonic.
Several rumors have also surfaced about a connection with chess grandmaster Tania Sachdev due to their frequent online collaborations,but they do not have a confirmed relationship.
Samay Raina Professional Career
Stand-Up Comedy and Comicstaan
Samay Raina’s professional career started in 2017, when he had to perform at multiple mic events. After performing at multiple mic events since 2017, Raina got his big break in 2019 when he co-won Comicstaan Season 2 with Aakash Gupta on Amazon Prime Video. This win gained him national recognition for his unfiltered, candid, and observational humor, especially rooted in his Kashmiri Heritage. Since his win, he has been touring globally with his stand-up special called ‘Unfiltered’ thus breaking records with sold-out shows.
Back in 2021, he appeared in One Mic Stand S2 and also Comedy Premium League on Netflix, only stabilising his influence in the comedic universe.
YouTube Channel and Chess Streaming
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Samay had become quite popular on digital content,and he launched chess streams on his YouTube channel around this time, especially when comedian Tanmay Bhatt suggested it. His entertaining commentary and collaborations with several known people in the industry like Vidit Gujrathi, Magnus Carlsen, and more, only brought more popularity to his career and made him famous amongst the younger audience. He went on to organize charity chess events like Chess for Charity and Comedians on Board, which aired from 2020-2022, and raised funds for social causes like waste pickers and flood relief. In 2021, he won the $10,000 Botez Bullet Invitational on Chess.com , thus earning $4000
Due to his unique approach, chess has become a lot more popular and Raina has played a massive role in bringing the popularity.
Samay Raina Show “India’s Got Latent“
In 2024, Samay launched India’s Got Latent, a YouTube comedy talent show that was inspired by Got Talent and Kill Tony. This show featured unconventional acts with a unique scoring system, thus causing a lot of praise for its innovative, but unfortunately has faced a lot of backlash and controversy for its inappropriate and bold humor and commentaries.
Famous Movies, Web Series
Samay has also earned acting credits especially with writing for Kiski Sarkar? And appearing in Raftaar X Badshah – Baawe. He featured in Comedy Premium League in 2021, on Netflix, and also on One Mic Stand S2 on Amazon Prime.
Awards and Achievements
| Year | Award/Recognition | Result |
| 2019 | Comicstaan Season 2 | Co-winner |
| 2024 | Varied online and comedy accolades | Recognized as a top content creator |
Samay Raina Net Worth
Samay Raina has made a name for himself that has made him earn his fortune. His net worth is expected to be around INR 140 crores or $16.5 million USD – but this is not the exact figure as several sources mention that his income is expected to be higher.
He earns his income from several sources like YouTube ad revenue and subscriptions, brand partnerships, chess matches, live comedy shows, and more.
| Net Worth | INR 140 crores and upward |
| Sources | YouTube ad revenue and subscriptions, brand partnerships, chess matches etc |
Samay Raina Social Media Presence
Samay Raina is active on social media both on Instagram and YouTube. His credentials are as follows.
| Social Media Presence | Handle | Followers |
| maisamayhoon | 6.8 million | |
| YouTube | SamayRainaOfficial | 7.3.9 Million |
Samay Raina Controversies
Samay Raina’s bold, unfiltered humor has sparked several controversies, drawing both criticism and support. Here is a summary of the controversies he had to face.:
2022 Abortion Joke Backlash
During a stand-up routine, Raina made a joke about abortion, which was deemed insensitive by some audiences. This led to a sparked social media debate about comedy boundaries, lack of responsibility, and such and Samay ultimately addressed the criticism in later performances, and instead of issuing a formal apology, he defended his provocative style.
2024 Pretty Good Roast Show
Samay made some remarks about Kusha Kapila’s divorce, and this was considered insensitive, especially during the Pretty Good Roast Show. This naturally drew in backlash from fans and Kapil, but Raina clarified that he had only comic intentions and nothing personal.
2025 India’s Got Latent Controvers
In the most recent controversy, there was an episode that featured Ranveer Allahabadia and included offensive remarks and inappropriate questions on parents and sex, and comparing Urfi Javed to Mia Khalifa. This provoked outrage and Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi raised the issue in Parliament, and Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis thus condemned the content. This led to multiple FIRS that were filed against Samay, Ranveer, and others for their allowed obscenity. The National Commission for Women also summoned them, and the Supreme Court criticized such remarks but granted temporary relief from their impending arrest. Samay removed the videos and cooperated with the authorities, whilst Ranveer apologized.
Conclusion
Samay Raina’s journey from small open mic events to becoming a well-known comedian/chess player is an inspiring story for everyone. His continuous drive to do more and his overall easy-going going fun personality have truly become his USP, which helps him gain more popularity.
With a growing net worth and expanding creative ventures, Samay Raina’s future plans include developing his OTT platform further, exploring collaborations in music and poetry, and continuously pushing the envelope in digital entertainment.
FAQ
He is currently 27 years old.
No, Samay Raina is very much single.
Born in October, Raina is a Scorpio.
He lives in Mumbai but travels a lot for work.
No one has confirmed their relationship status.