'I almost got deported on landing here'

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I almost got deported on landing here

The vision of the UAE in my mind was a vast arid hot desert.

by

A Staff Reporter

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Published: Sat 21 Jan 2017, 12:28 PM

Last updated: Sat 21 Jan 2017, 3:37 PM

Tanvir Kanji
Chairman, Inca Group of Companies
It was December 1, 1975. I came to Dubai on a three-week holiday as I had friends here. On landing, I almost got deported as my original visa which was deposited with the airline had not been forwarded to the immigration counter. Finally I was allowed to make a call to my 'sponsor'. The immigration authorities were kind enough to let me cross over to the departure area to make the call.
The vision of the UAE in my mind was a vast arid hot desert. However, on exiting the airport building I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was raining.
During the three weeks in the UAE, I had a great time. It was pre-Christmas. There were only a handful of hotels and restaurants then and so everyone was taking turns to throw Christmas get-togethers at their homes.
The expat population was small. Everyone seemed to know everyone else and were ever willing to help each other. Even in those early days before development started in earnest, there was a distinct vibrant energy in the environment and after each evening's socialising I was convinced that this was where I wanted to be (having passed up opportunities in London, New York and Los Angeles).
So I went back on December 24, 1975, and returned on April 6, 1976, to establish my advertising agency.
As is obvious, in the past 30 years things have changed radically. Today the UAE is an ultra-modern country, I think it is more developed than the so-called 'developed countries'.


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