A Mumbai Parsi family says it is racing against time to find a roof over its head after a business venture in Dubai left them with nothing, according to a report in Mumbai Mirror.
What happened
Zubin Lala, 37, along with his 61-year-old mother Rita Lala and his elderly grandmother Silloo Lala, are currently staying at a Parsi Dharamshala in Kalbadevi, having returned from Dubai. The shelter has allowed them only 14 days' stay, after which the family says it has no home, income, or immediate support to fall back on.
Lala says that in March, the family sold its only residence — a pagdi-system flat in Dadar Parsi Colony — at less than half its market value, in order to fund what he believed was a promising business opportunity in the UAE.
"I sold everything because I believed I was investing in a better future for my family. Today, we don't even have a roof over our heads," he said.
The Dubai venture
According to Lala, he invested roughly AED 230,000 (about ₹52 lakh) in a Dubai-based cloud kitchen, Yes Healthy Restaurant LLC, in which he says he holds a 25% stake. He says the funds were moved through a mix of cash, hawala transactions, the Wise money-transfer platform, and debit card payments made toward government fees and business expenses.
Lala says his name appears on the company's trade licence, its Memorandum of Association, and the partnership agreement — but he alleges he was never treated as a genuine partner. "They promised me a salary initially and later my share of the profits. I never received either. Instead, they kept asking me to arrange more money while refusing to show me the company's accounts," he alleged.
He has accused his business associates of criminal breach of trust, fraud, and embezzlement, and claims they attempted — unsuccessfully — to have his name removed from the trade licence by falsely telling authorities he had sold his shares. He says the relevant Dubai authority rejected that request.
Seeking help, finding none
Lala alleges that after he asked for his investment back, he was threatened and physically intimidated by one of his business partners. After the family was evicted from their Dubai accommodation, he says he approached local police to seek criminal action — but that his complaint was closed, and he and his family were instead taken to the psychiatric department of Rashid Hospital for a mental health evaluation, despite what he says was his sound mental state.
He says that despite holding partnership papers and financial records, he received no effective assistance, and that pursuing legal proceedings in Dubai was out of reach because of lawyers' fees and translation costs. He also alleges that the Indian Consulate in Dubai did not provide meaningful help despite repeated requests.
Returning with nothing
The family says it was deported and returned to India with almost nothing, and that educational certificates, identity documents, family photographs, and religious articles remain in Dubai despite assurances they would be shipped back.
"My mother is a heart patient. She has suffered severe anxiety because of everything that happened. My grandmother is elderly and struggles to walk and see. They came to Dubai believing we were starting a new life. Instead, we came back with nothing," Lala said.
Having sold the only home they had, the family has no permanent address to return to. The Kalbadevi dharamshala is, for now, their sole refuge.
"We have only a few days left here. After that, I don't know where my mother, my grandmother and I will go. We may have to sleep on the streets," Lala said.
He says he has approached multiple authorities seeking help to recover his investment, retrieve the family's belongings from Dubai, and secure temporary rehabilitation.
A note on verification
Lala's allegations have not been independently verified. The individuals he has named were not immediately available for comment when Mumbai Mirror sought a response. Lala says he has also approached the Mumbai Police, but that no complaint has been registered, as the matter is understood to fall under Dubai's jurisdiction.
Parsi Khabar will continue to follow this story and any updates on efforts to secure the family's rehabilitation.