In a heartwarming tale of enduring friendship, a bunch of friends from Abu Dhabi have been supporting a stranded and broke expat financially for the past eight years.
Vaisakh Surendran’s life has been a rollercoaster ride ever since he landed in Abu Dhabi about 15 years ago. From working as a helper to starting his own business, it was a fairytale in the making, but his fortune took a drastic turn when he got cheated by his relative, leaving him broke, landing him in jail, and fighting half a dozen court cases.
However, the kindness of his friends Arshad Abdul Azeez, Ahmed Farris and a third person who wishes to remain anonymous have ensured that Surendran always has a roof over his head and food on the table.
Now that all six court cases have been settled, thanks to contributions from his friends, Surendran faces an overstay fine since 2019 and pending dues of Dh40,000, an amount that his friends cannot afford to pay, and prevents him from returning to his native place of Kerala, where his nine-year-old son and family await.
How he lost everything
“I came here in 2009. My first job was as a helper for a salary of Dh1,300 at a company in Abu Dhabi. In 2013, I moved to a Dubai-based company as a salesman for Dh2,300. I got married, and became a father in 2015,” Surendran said.
When the going was good, he launched a trading company with a partner in Abu Dhabi’s Mussafah – a decision he rues to date.
“I invested all my savings into starting a foodstuff trading company. My friend, a partner in this company, backed out after initial months. By 2017, the going got tough, and I started suffering losses in business.”
Adding to his misery, a relative cheated Surendran leading to jail time for a year.
“My relative, who is my sister’s husband, took guarantee cheques in my company’s name and raised huge money. But when it was time for repayment, those cheques bounced as I didn’t have money in my account. He also took a flat on rent in Ras Al Khaimah using my guarantee cheques. It bounced too. He played it safe. I got into trouble.”
Since April 2017, Surendran hasn’t been able to renew his company licence because of court cases.
“I lost all these years of my life to six court cases, and a year in jail for no fault of mine. It was my friends who gave me support and strength throughout this time. My friends have helped settle cases,” Surendran said.
Support of friends
Arshad Abdul Azeez, an Abu Dhabi resident, has known Surendran since school days. “We went to the same school in Grades 11 and 12. I landed here in 2008. I work in the healthcare sector. Surendran stayed in my place for about a year in 2017 as his struggle started,” Azeez said.
Later, friends like Azzez, Farris, and others paid his monthly house rents, food, and took care of urgent needs back at Surendran’s home. When friends raised Dh23,000 to settle a final court case, they were all happy that now Surendran would be able to return home, but then they found out about the pending overstay dues since 2019.
“His overstay fine amounts to more than Dh30,000. He has paid some amount but it keeps mounting. There is another pending dues of his company phone bills, which amounts to about Dh10,000. Overall, it’s more than 40,000. It’s too big a sum for us to raise. We are looking for ways to support him. He hasn’t been home for 8 years nor seen his son,” said Farris, who works at a clinic.
Surendran’s wife has a part-time job back home, which helps to keep things going.
“My parents are growing old. My son is in Grade 5, and his friends tease him that his father is not there for any parent-teacher meeting. I endured this struggle with the help of my friends, and a hope to return home one day,” Surendran said.