Dubai Reality Check: An Indian VC's Year of Truth
By Asutosh Upadhyay, Co-Founder @ FortyTwo.VC
It's going to be a year soon since I stepped off the plane at DXB with two suitcases and a head full of grand plans. Let me save you some time with what I've learned: the glossy Instagram reels of Dubai's skyline are tutorial level. The real game starts when you try to do business here.
The Beautiful Collision of Expectations vs. Reality
There's a particular expression I've seen on the faces of fellow Indians about three weeks into their Dubai journey. It's a distinctive blend of confusion, mild panic, and the dawning realization that the playbook they've mastered back home might not be of much use here.
I know this expression intimately – I wore it myself last June.
Dubai isn't India with better infrastructure or Singapore with more tax benefits. It's its own complex ecosystem with unwritten rules that nobody bothers explaining to newcomers. You're just expected to figure it out, preferably without asking too many obvious questions.
The VC World: When Your Impressive Portfolio Suddenly Isn't
My first meeting with a potential local partner was a masterclass in humility. I came prepared with a slick deck showcasing our portfolio companies' growth metrics, the notable markups, the awards. Twenty minutes in, I realized something: nobody had asked to see any of this.
Instead, the conversation circled around seemingly peripheral topics:
Which other families I knew in the region
My thoughts on the latest regulatory changes
Whether I planned to bring my family over
& What are my plans to invest locally.
It took me embarrassingly long to realize that this wasn’t small talk – this WAS the meeting. In India, relationships form after business alignment. Here, it's precisely the reverse.
A fellow VC from Bangalore put it perfectly during a moment of shared frustration: "In India, we're selling a deal. Here, we're selling ourselves first."
The Founder's Dilemma: Why Isn't Anyone Impressed?
I've watched brilliant Indian founders crash against the shores of Dubai like waves – making noise on arrival but ultimately receding without leaving much impression.
One founder friend who built a fairly successful SaaS platform in India couldn't understand why his pitch wasn't landing. "We're offering 40% cost savings!" he insisted.
"Yes," I explained over overpriced coffee, "but how does that address the complex ecosystem these businesses operate in? Have you considered their multi-layered approval processes and the need to stand out in an already premium market?"
The blank stare told me everything I needed to know.
What my friend missed was the fundamentally different decision-making structure here.
Local businesses aren't just looking for efficiency, they're navigating intricate stakeholder relationships where decisions are diffused across various levels of influence. A solution that simply cuts costs misses the more nuanced needs: enhancing prestige, aligning with family business values, and offering something genuinely unique in a market where exclusivity matters.
The most successful tech entrepreneurs I've seen here have flipped the script: instead of explaining how Dubai fits into their vision, they've articulated how they fit into the complex tapestry of local business culture here.
The Patience Paradox
Time moves differently in the business world here. What looks like inefficiency to the Indian hustle mindset is actually a deliberate pace of relationship building. We're used to compressed timelines and quick decisions. Here, things marinate.
I watched one impatient (and brilliant) fintech founder leave after two weeks of "no progress," while another stayed for two months, seemingly just having endless coffee meetings. Guess which one closed their funding round? The second one.
The Competence Recalibration
There's a particular cognitive adjustment required when you move from being a big fish in the Indian pond to swimming in Dubai's global aquarium. Here, you're not just competing with local talent – you're up against the best from everywhere.
Here, the market demands you come dressed in a tuxedo, not the jeans and blazer that passed for formal back home. Your packaging, your experience, your digital presence – everything needs to exude a level of sophistication that would seem excessive in most Indian markets.
The benchmark is simply different. Dubai natives have been conditioned to expect world-class at every point.
I distinctly remember showing a UAE-focused strategy to a mentor who had been here for decades. He flipped through it silently, then looked up and said simply: "This would be impressive in India. Here, it's just adequate."
Ouch. But necessary.
The Hierarchy of Needs You Didn't Know Existed
Six months in, I started mapping out what I call the "Hierarchy of Business Needs" – the unspoken value system that determines whether you'll get traction here:
Presence – Not just visiting, but being visibly committed to the region
Patience – Demonstrating you're here for the long game, not a quick harvest
Network – Who vouches for you matters as much as what your pitch deck says
Relevance – How your offering advances local priorities, not just solves a problem
Excellence – Meeting global standards, not just being better than competitors back home
I've watched dozens of Indian businesses struggle because they tried to start at level 5 without building the foundation.
The Cultural Code-Switching
The most fascinating adjustment has been learning when to deploy what I call "Indian business DNA" (direct & value-conscious) versus adapting to the more relationship-centric, prestige-aware approach that works here.
Some contexts call for our natural Indian strengths. Others require us to operate entirely differently. Knowing which is which? That's the real superpower.
At a recent business dinner, I watched a newcomer Indian CEO repeatedly steer the conversation to ROI and timelines while his local counterpart was clearly trying to establish personal rapport first. The discomfort was palpable. Two different languages were being spoken, neither understanding the other.
The Indian executive was unknowingly embodying what locals here sometimes call "suitcase business" – flying in, rushing through meetings with transaction-focused efficiency, and flying out.
It's the business equivalent of speed dating when the local business culture prefers a courtship. No one wants to feel like just another quick deal on your Dubai stopover.
The Breakthrough Moment
For me, everything changed around month eight. I stopped trying to recreate my Indian approach in a new setting and started building something new that incorporated the best of both worlds.
The meetings that once felt like pulling teeth suddenly flowed. Opportunities started appearing not from cold outreach but through warm introductions. The same ideas that fell flat earlier now found receptive audiences.
Nothing about my core offering had changed – but everything about my approach had.
For Those Following This Path
If you're an Indian founder or investor eyeing Dubai, here's my hard-earned wisdom:
Come with curiosity, not certainty – Your expertise is real, but the context is new.
Build relationships before transactions – What feels like wasted time is actually foundation-laying.
Understand the local vision – Frame your offering within UAE's strategic priorities.
Commit visibly – Your presence speaks volumes about your seriousness.
Elevate everything – From your marketing materials to your product quality, the bar is higher.
Most importantly, bring your sense of humour. The ability to laugh at yourself when you inevitably stumble is perhaps the most valuable asset you can pack.
We’d love to hear about your experiences in Dubai in the comment box below :)
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