Rapper Imran Khan spotted wearing a Cartier

Punjabi-Belgian rapper Imran Khan was recently photographed displaying a Cartier Santos 100 Chronograph in 18k white gold with a full diamond pavé setting on his wrist, pairing it with a Stone Island puffer jacket and a Louis Vuitton crossbody bag — a studied mix of streetwear credibility and fine-watch gravitas that has become a signature of the global rap aesthetic.

The Cartier Santos 100 Chronograph XL, most likely reference W20093X8, is among the most architecturally bold pieces in the Santos lineage. Built on the iconic square case with exposed Roman-numeral screws — themselves a nod to aeronautical engineering — the chronograph variant measures 51.1 × 44.3mm in 18k white gold. The movement powering this piece is the calibre 8630, a column-wheel integrated chronograph with approximately 42 hours of power reserve, regulated to -4/+6 seconds per day. The silvered dial carries three subsidiary registers at 3, 6, and 9 o'clock, with a date aperture at 4:30, all framed by sword-shaped blued-steel hands.

The diamond pavé transformation applied to this reference — covering the bezel, flanks, crown guards, and bracelet links — represents Cartier's high-jewellery atelier at work. Estimates suggest upward of 5 carats of brilliant-cut diamonds in a tight, uniform setting that catches light without disrupting the dial's legibility. This is precisely the kind of piece Cartier produces in extremely limited volumes, straddling the fine jewellery and serious watchmaking departments simultaneously.

From a collector's perspective, the Santos 100 Chronograph in plain steel or gold is already a niche proposition — the chronograph was discontinued from the main catalogue around 2019, making surviving examples increasingly sought after. The diamond pavé variant occupies an even more rarefied tier, rarely appearing in secondary market databases and commanding strong premiums when it does.

At an original retail of approximately $36,900, the diamond Santos 100 Chronograph was never entry-level, but today grey-market values for pristine examples with full papers have trended upward given its discontinuation. For Imran Khan — whose music has charted across South Asia and Europe — the watch is a coherent statement: European luxury craftsmanship filtered through a distinctly global sensibility.