Vinay Rai (born 18 September 1979) is an Indian film actor, commonly appearing in Tamil films, as well as modelling and ramp walking in noted fashion shows.He played rugby for BRFC and represented India in 2005. He is best known for his Box office hits Unnale Unnale (2007), Jayamkondaan (2008), Aranmanai (2014) and Thupparivaalan (2017).
Vinay was originally a ramp model in Bangalore. He debuted as an actor in director Jeeva's Unnale Unnale co-starring Sadha and Tanisha Mukherjee. The film became a huge success upon release and brought in more acting offers for Vinay Rai.
Since his debut film, he has appeared in a Telugu language film, Vaana, which flopped at the box-office and a critically successful Tamil film Jayamkondaan, for which his performance was acclaimed. In 2009, he appeared in Saran's Modhi Vilayadu alongside Kajal Aggarwal which also fared poorly at the box office, while two of his films Veelle and Nootruku Nooru were stalled during production. He made a comeback in 2011 with a role in the English film, Dam 999, which had a poor commercial and critical response. His only 2012 release was the Tamil film Mirattal. The film, which starred Sharmila Mandre opposite him, got an average response.
Vinay then appeared in Aayirathil iruvar again with Saran, Thupparivaalan, Aranmanai and Serndhu Polama.