YRF Music: Yash Raj Films' Music Label Story
Yash Raj Films (YRF) is one of Bollywood's most powerful production houses. For decades, the music of its films was released by other labels — most notably the HMV-Saregama group. In 2004, YRF decided to take control of its own music, launching YRF Music. That decision reshaped how Bollywood studios thought about their soundtracks.
Why YRF Started Its Own Label
Music is inseparable from Hindi cinema. A film's soundtrack often matters as much as its story, and the rights to that music are a major revenue stream. For years, YRF founder Yash Raj Chopra worked with outside music companies. In 2004, the company launched its own music business, initially rolling out the label overseas with the music of Dhoom and Hum Tum, before launching a full-fledged in-house Music and Home Entertainment Division in India with the release of Veer-Zaara. The label also marketed film classics from Raj Kapoor, B.R. Chopra, Bimal Roy, and Guru Dutt.
The Soundtracks That Built the Label
YRF Music grew on the back of the studio's own blockbusters. The company had already shaped the music industry through films like Darr (1993), Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995), and Dil To Pagal Hai (1997). Under its own label, it released and distributed soundtracks that became era-defining. The label also supported the careers of a generation of composers, including Jatin–Lalit, Anu Malik, Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy, Pritam, Vishal–Shekhar, Salim–Sulaiman, Amit Trivedi, Sachin–Jigar, and Jasleen Royal.
A Business That Worked Fast
The label found commercial success quickly. Within six months of its India operations, YRF Music touched Rs 20 crore in revenue by March 2005, with Veer-Zaara as its most successful album, selling over 1.5 million copies. Beyond its own productions, the label acquired rights to distribute music for films from other production houses, including Black, Jurm, and Mangal Pandey: The Rising.
A New Chapter: Raah Records
More than twenty years after YRF Music's launch, YRF entered a new phase. In 2026, the studio launched Raah Records, described as a new music company and incubator created to discover, develop, and support original artists — helping them build long-term careers beyond film music. Unlike YRF Music, which releases film soundtracks, Raah Records signs and nurtures independent talent, with a focus on careers rather than one-off campaigns. It is a sign of how far the Indian industry has come: the biggest film studio in Bollywood now invests in the indie ecosystem.
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