Dayahang Rai

Dayahang Rai (दयाहाङ् राई; born 13 April 1980) is a Nepalese actor, director, and playwright.

Dayahang is known for his uniqueness in Nepali cinema.

He is one of the most popular and acclaimed actors of Nepal.

He has starred in over 40 films and is one of the leading contemporary actors of Nepal.

He has received various accolades throughout his acting career.

Dayahang is a veteran theatrical actor who made the jump to Nepali cinemas.

Dayahang rose to prominence from the television series Yuva, Dalan, and Hamro Team.

Dayahang Rai was born on 13 April 1980, in Khawa, Bhojpur district in Eastern Nepal to Tilak Ram Rai and Chandra Devi Rai.

He is the middle child of the family.

He has two younger sisters and an older brother.

His family belongs to the Bantawa Rai people of Kirat ethnicity of Nepal.

Dayahang completed his lower secondary-level studies from Pashupati Lower Secondary School in Khawa VDC, Bhojpur District, and high school from Annapurna Secondary School, Dilpa, Bhojpur in 1998.

He completed his intermediate level studies at Bhojpur Multiple College as a Geography Major.

He moved to Kathmandu in 2001 and joined The Ratna Rajya Campus (now Manawiki Campus) as Journalism Major.

Dayahang's mother used to tell him fairy tales as a child, which fascinated him greatly and fostered his imagination.

He was interested in acting from his early childhood.

He got into drama at school.

Dayahang's heart was not in his studies, so he decided to follow his dream and pursue a career in theatre and stage.

followed by Dalan, a series directed by Nabin Subba in 2003.

He made his film debut with Anagarik (2006).

He started his big screen career as the lead in Anagarik (2006), a feature film by Ram Babu Gurung, which won two awards at the Nepal International Indigenous Film Festival.

After participating in the play Talakjung vs Tulke as an actor and Dhiren Raja as co-actor, Dayahang joined Actors’ Studio (a platform for theater artists in Nepal) in 2007.

He is now affiliated to Mandala Theatre, Nepal, which he co-founded with Rajan Khatiwada and Srijana Limbu (Subba).

Dayahang's first foray into screen acting was Yuwa.

Dayahang Rai is the recipient of numerous awards including three National Awards for best supporting actor in 2009 for Dasdhunga; best actor in 2015 for Sambodhan, and best actor in 2016 for Kabaddi Kabaddi.

The series was broadcast by Nepal Television in 2009.

Dayahang followed it by starring in the romantic film Mero Euta Saathi Chha (2009) directed by Sudarshan Thapa.

Dayahang received considerable recognition for his role in the movie Dasdhunga (2009).

He received his first National Award for Dasdhunga for the best supporting actor.

Dasdhunga (2010) was fairly successful, but Loot (2012) turned out to be the turning point in his career, which was a massive hit.

He starred as a doctor in Acharya (2010), directed by Prashant Rasaily and Mero Love Story in 2010.

In 2012, Dayahang appeared in the hit Nepali film Loot.

Dayahang also co-wrote the dialogues in this film.

His character Gofle, earned him positive reviews from critics and audiences alike.

The film was a turning point in his career.

He won the Popular Award for Loot.

Dayahang gained more popularity for his role in the film Highway (2012).

Since then he has starred in many commercially successful films Chhadke (2013), Badhshala (2013), Karkash (2013), Jholey (2014), Kabaddi (2013) and its sequels Kabaddi Kabaddi (2015) and Kabaddi Kabaddi Kabaddi(2019), Talakjung vs Tulke (2014), Woda Number 6 (2015), How Funny (2016), Bir Bikram (2016), Loot 2 (2017), Kaanchi (2018) and Jatrai Jatra (2019).

The 2013 film Chhadke brought Dayahang and other well-known actors of Nepali cinema like Saugat Malla and Arpan Thapa together.

The movie White Sun (2016) which he starred in, was the first ever Nepali movie entered for the Academy Awards.