Rapper Emiway Bantai receives ₹1 cr ransom call from ‘Goldy Brar’

The threat message sent to the rapper also mentioned the name of US-based Rohit Godara, another close associate of the gangster, officers said

NAVI MUMBAI: Popular rapper Muhammad Bilal Shaikh, better known by his stage name Emiway Bantai, has received a death threat with a ransom demand of ₹1 crore from a person who identified himself as Goldy Brar, a Canada-based close associate of incarcerated gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, according to the police. The threat message sent to the rapper also mentioned the name of US-based Rohit Godara, another close associate of the gangster, officers said.

Rapper Emiway Bantai receives ₹1 cr ransom call from ‘Goldy Brar’

A mobile number registered with Shaikh’s company Bantai Records received the message on May 25. The rapper, who lives in Nerul, filed a complaint at the NRI Coastal police station early Tuesday through an employee of Bantai Records who spotted the message. The message stated, “I am gangster Goldy Brar. Your singer has 24 hours. I want ₹1 crore or else I will kill him.”

Coincidentally, Shaikh released a song titled Tribute to Sidhu Moose Wala on May 26, almost exactly three years after the popular Punjabi rapper was gunned down by unidentified assailants in his hometown of Mansa. The police later claimed Bishnoi, who has been in jail since 2014, was the mastermind behind the killing, for which Brar also claimed responsibility.

The NRI Coastal police have registered a case against an unidentified person under sections of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita related to extortion. They are investigating the matter and trying to ascertain the identity of the person who sent the message, officers said.

HT tried contacting Shaikh, but the calls went unanswered.

Who is Emiway Bantai?

Widely recognised as one of Indian hip-hop’s biggest success stories, Emiway Bantai is also one of the scene’s most contentious and divisive voices. The Bengaluru-born, Mumbai-raised rapper—whose real name is Muhammad Bilal Shaikh—made his debut in 2013 with the English rap song Glint Lock. But on his father’s advice, he shifted focus to rapping in Hindi, finding early underground success with 2014 single Aur Bantai.

The prolific rapper has kept up a steady stream of releases, finally breaking through into the mainstream with 2019’s party-rap cut Machayenge, which went viral on the now-banned TikTok and racked up over 228 million views on YouTube. Collaborations with international stars—including Macklemore, Snoop Dogg, Lazarus, and Jamaican cricketer Chris Gayle—followed. With 21.8 million followers on YouTube, and over three billion views, Emiway—who launched his own label Bantai Records in 2021—has now established himself as one of India’s biggest independent music stars.

Emiway’s rise to the top has also been characterised by conflicts with other rappers, notably a beef with former collaborator Raftaar in 2018 that saw the two exchange a furious flurry of diss tracks, generating intense social media buzz in the process. He’s also feuded with rappers such as Divine, MC Stan, King and Muhfaad, though his most enduring and divisive beef has been with New Delhi rapper KR$NA.