Rai (surname)

Rai (राय; رائے‎; রায়; राई) is a surname in use since historical times on the Indian subcontinent. Etymologically the term is inherited from, from  राजन्. Rai is a doublet with the राजा: both words—raja and rai—mean 'king' in Hindi.

People

 * A. N. Rai (born 1955), Indian academic administrator
 * Aanand L. Rai (born 1971), Indian film director and producer
 * Aaron Rai (born 1995), English golfer
 * Ade Rai (born 1970), Indonesian bodybuilder
 * Agansing Rai (1920–2000), Nepali recipient of the Victoria Cross
 * Aishwarya Rai (born 1973), Indian actress and former Miss World
 * Ajay Rai, Indian politician
 * Ajeet Rai (born 1999), New Zealand tennis player
 * Alisha Rai (author), American writer
 * Alka Rai, Indian politician
 * Amit Rai, Indian film director
 * Amrit Rai (c. 1921–1996), Indian writer
 * Anand Rai (born 1977), Indian activist
 * Asish Rai (born 1999), Indian footballer
 * Atul Rai (born 1982), Indian politician
 * Babbal Rai (born 1985), Indian Punjab singer
 * Baleshwar Rai, Indian politician, former Indian Administrative Service officer
 * Bali Rai (born 1971), English young-adult fiction novelist
 * Béchara Boutros Raï (born 1940), Maronite Catholic Patriarch of Antioch
 * Bina Rai (1931–2009), Indian actress
 * Brij Mangal Rai (1914–1998), Indian freedom fighter and politician
 * Daroga Prasad Rai (1922–1981), Indian politician
 * Dayahang Rai (born 1979), Nepali actor
 * Dipak Rai, Nepali footballer
 * Gauri Shankar Rai (1924–1991), Indian politician
 * Gopal Rai (born 1975), Indian politician
 * Gulshan Rai (1924–2004), Indian film producer and distributor
 * Guru Har Rai (1630–1661), Sikh guru
 * Harivansh Rai Bachchan (1907–2003), Awadhi Poet
 * Haqiqat Rai, Sikh martyr
 * Himanshu Rai (1892–1940), Indian film pioneer
 * I Gusti Ngurah Rai, National Hero of Indonesia
 * Indra Bahadur Rai (1927–2018), Indian writer
 * Jharkhande Rai (died 1984), Indian politician
 * Jitendra Kumar Rai (born 1978), Cabinet Minister Bihar
 * Kalpana Rai (1950–2008), Indian actress
 * Kalpnath Rai (1941–1999), Indian politician
 * Kayyar Kinhanna Rai (1915–2015), Indian writer in Kannada and activist
 * Krishnanand Rai (1956–2005), Indian politician
 * Kuber Nath Rai (1933–1996), Indian writer
 * Kusum Rai (born 1968), Indian politician
 * Lakshmi Rai (born 1989), Indian actress
 * Lala Lajpat Rai (1865–1928), Indian author, freedom fighter and politician
 * Lalit Rai (born 1956), Indian Army officer
 * Mangla Rai (1916–1976), Indian professional wrestler
 * Manikala Rai (born 1988), Nepali ultra runner
 * Melina Rai, Nepali singer
 * Mira Rai (born 1988), Nepali trail and sky runner
 * Mona Rai, Chief Minister of Gour Kingdom
 * Mridu Rai, Indian historian
 * Mukrand Rai, Mughal governor
 * Muthappa Rai (died 2020), Indian businessman, philanthropist and social activist
 * Nandini Rai, Indian actress
 * Nityanand Rai (born 1966), Indian politician
 * Pamela Rai (born 1966), Canadian swimmer
 * Prakash Rai (born 1965), Indian actor, director, producer and politician
 * Pramila Rai (born 1963), Nepali politician
 * Raghu Rai (born 1942), Indian photojournalist
 * Rajiv Rai (born 1955), Indian film director and screenwriter
 * Baba Ram Rai (1645–1687), Sikh founder of Ramraiya
 * Rai Hau-min, President of the Judicial Yuan
 * Ram Bahadur Rai (born 1946), Indian journalist
 * Ramanna Rai (1930–2008), Indian politician
 * Ramanath Rai (born 1952), Indian politician
 * Ramdeo Rai (1943–2020), Indian politician
 * Ramveer Rai (born 1987), Emirati cricketer
 * Randeep Rai (born 1993), Indian actor
 * Sabin Rai, Nepali singer
 * Sara Rai (born 1956), Indian writer
 * Sarita Rai, Indian politician
 * Shivpujan Rai (1913–1942), Indian independence activist and politician
 * Suyyash Rai (born 1989), Indian actor and singer
 * Tarundeep Rai (born 1984), Indian archer
 * Upendra Rai (born 1982), Indian journalist
 * Vinay Rai (born 1979), Indian actor
 * Vinit Rai (born 1997), Indian footballer
 * Vinod Rai (born 1948), former Comptroller and Auditor General of India
 * Viveki Rai (1924–2016), Indian Hindi-language writer