Mumbai, Aug 4 (IANS): Rapper Raftaar has invested in the FrontRow app, six months after Deepika Padukone invested in the same platform.

After investing in the learning and community platform, Raftaar told IANS: "I am very excited to be joining forces with the stellar crew at FrontRow and see how I can add value in fostering the culture of non-academic education across India. In my teenage years, I was always motivated by the creative arts and felt like a misfit in the conventional educational setup. I have always believed there is more to life than traditional degrees and textbook knowledge and skill development deserves its spotlight now, more than ever."

Elaborating how the app would be beneficial for the youth in rural areas due to unlimited avenues, he added: "Whilst interacting with young minds during my tours in different cities, I realised that rural India has alternate passions, most of which it cannot pursue. The students would come up to me and talk about their acting, singing, and filmmaking dreams. They didn't want to do engineering, IT, or medical. But they had limited avenues because they weren't in Mumbai or New Delhi."

Emphasising the necessity of the app in today's times, he said: "I want to make non-academic learning accessible and affordable for small-town Indians and hope to do so as I embark on this new journey. A big shout out to my partner, Ankit Khanna (AK Projekts) for making this happen."

FrontRow has secured an undisclosed amount from Raftaar and AK Projekts. The fundraise came six months after Frontrow secured seed funding of $3.2 million from Deepika Padukone, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Elevation Capital (formerly SAIF Partners).

Reflecting on the development, Mikhil Raj, co-founder, FrontRow told IANS: "We are excited to join hands with Raftaar on the mission of democratising access to learning with partnerships with some of the industry's finest peers and experts at an affordable price from the comfort of your home. We continue to aspire to make learning accessible, easier, and enjoyable at FrontRow with partnerships like these."

The non-academic skill development platform was founded by serial entrepreneurs Mikhil Raj, Shubhadit Sharma, and Ishaan Preet Singh in 2020.

The app has forged creative alliances with celebrities like Neha Kakkar, DIVINE, Suresh Raina, Amit Trivedi, Biswa Kalyan Rath, Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Raju Srivastava, Sunburn, MortaL and 8bit Thug in the past.

Adding on Ankit Khanna, founder, AK Projekts said: "We are extremely bullish on the opportunity presented in the celebrity-driven vocational training platform segment in India. We believe there is huge merit and scope in this business that allows a wide section of people to have access to leaders from their respective fields and to learn from them directly. We are excited to support a new archetype for learning, an assortment of education, entertainment, and community."