Yash Raj Films Enters Music With Raah Records, Debuts Aman’s ‘Jaadugari’

Yash Raj Films, one of India's oldest privately held entertainment conglomerates, has stepped into the independent music space with the launch of Raah Records, a record label and artist incubator designed to develop original Indian music talent outside film soundtracks.

The label's inaugural release, "Jaadugari" by singer-songwriter Aman, arrives across streaming platforms on 5 August. According to Variety, YRF has been cultivating musicians through an incubator model over the past year, with Aman becoming the first artist to publicly emerge from the programme.

A Strategic Pivot Into Independent Music

Akshaye Widhani, CEO of Yash Raj Films, described the venture as a watershed moment for the company's music division. "Raah Records represents an important strategic expansion of Yash Raj Films' music business," Widhani told Variety. "For over five decades, we have believed in identifying exceptional talent and creating platforms where creativity can thrive. As India's independent music ecosystem enters a defining phase of growth, we believe great artists need more than distribution—they need belief, time and long-term creative partnership."

The label operates on a model fundamentally different from conventional release-driven record companies. Rather than focusing on campaign-to-campaign rollouts, Raah Records positions itself as a sustained creative partnership with artists, emphasising career development over short-term commercial cycles.

Incubator Model and Artist Development

Nakul Sharma, senior general manager of music management at Yash Raj Films, heads Raah Records and has overseen its artist development strategy, A&R approach and incubation process. Sharma's role encompasses support across songwriting, production, creative direction, audience growth and strategic partnerships from the earliest stages of an artist's career.

"Raah Records was built on a belief that artists need time, they need trust, and they need the space to grow into who they already are," Sharma said in a statement to Variety. "Our role is to stand beside them throughout that journey, helping them build lasting careers without losing what makes them unique. Aman is exactly the kind of artist we built Raah for, and 'Jaadugari' felt like a fitting way to begin his journey and the label's."

Expansion Plans Ahead

Founded in 1970 by the late Yash Chopra, Yash Raj Films operates across production, post-production, distribution, music, digital content, marketing, talent management, licensing, merchandising and brand partnerships. The studio has anchored its music business in Indian film soundtracks for more than five decades; Raah Records marks its formal foray into artist-led releases independent of cinema.

The company signalled that additional signings and releases will follow as the label's roster expands in the coming months, though no timeline or artist names have been confirmed.