Background and career
Aarif Rahman (Chinese: 李治廷; pinyin: Lǐ Zhìtíng; Jyutping: lei5 zi6 ting4, born 26 February 1987), also known as Aarif Lee Zhi-ting, is a Hong Kong actor, singer and songwriter.
Born in Hong Kong, Aarif Rahman is of mixed Arab, Malay and Chinese descent. He grew up in Hong Kong and attended King George V School, where he discovered his penchant for music and started playing drums, guitar and the piano, as well as dabbling in song-writing. After graduating with a physics degree from the Imperial College London, Rahman signed with East Asia Record Production company. Aarif is paternal first cousins to noted tech entrepreneurs, the Handley brothers - Shanghai based Geoffrey Handley, New Zealand based Derek Handley and NYC based Calum Handley.
Rahman first gained the interest of the Hong Kong music scene when he was exposed as the writer who penned all the lyrics in Janice Vidal's 2009 English album Morning. Following this, in 2009 he released his debut album Starting from Today, which won him the Best Newcomer award at the Metro Radio Music Awards. Rahman then made his film debut in the movie Echoes of the Rainbow (2010), which won him the Hong Kong Film Award for Best New Performer and Hong Kong Film Directors' Guild for Best New Actor of the Year – Silver Award. The theme song which he sang also won the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Original Song. He then starred as Bruce Lee in the dramatic biopic film Bruce Lee, My Brother (2010) and as a ICAC principal investigator in the crime thriller Cold War (2012). In 2013, Rahman starred in the Mainland romantic comedy One Night Surprise. The low-budget film unexpectedly became a commercial success, and received positive reviews. Rahman won the Best New Actor award at the 1st China International Film Festival London and Outstanding Performance award at the Chinese Film Media Awards for his performance. Rahman then starred in historical drama The Empress of China, where he played the role of Li Zhi. The 82-episode TV series was broadcast on Hunan Television from 21 December 2014 to 5 February 2015, and earned increased recognition for Rahman in the Mainland region. He won the Best Actor in the Ancient Drama category at the Huading Awards for his performance. In 2016, Rahman starred alongside Korean actress Kim Ha-neul in the family film Making Family. He also featured in Guo Jingming's fantasy animated motion capture L.O.R.D: Legend of Ravaging Dynasties, and reprised his role in the sequel of Cold War. In 2017, Rahman starred alongside Jackie Chan in the action comedy film Kung Fu Yoga. The same year, he starred in Tsui Hark's science fiction wuxia film The Thousand Faces of Dunjia. In 2019, Rahman starred in the historical romance drama Princess Silver as the male lead. In 2026, Rahman plays the character Tony Wang in the film Once Upon a Time in the Middle East.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
