It's Hard To Become A Star As A Migrant Worker

I’ve always been fascinated by Dubai and the rest of the Arabian Gulf, because of the quick transformation from small fishing communities before the discovery of oil to the current cosmopolitan cities full of skyscrapers and shopping malls. 

Because, consequently, the large majority of the population consists of guest workers (or expats), and a big difference exists between rich and poor. It is a place where people go to earn money to be able to send their children to school, even if it means seeing them only once every year or two.

This beautifully written article tells the story of Collin Ishaq, who moved from Pakistan to the United Arab Emirates to work at Dubai’s international airport. 

His camp was on the outskirts; from there, even the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, looked like a distant star. It was the kind of dispiriting place where everyone understood that their dreams were maxed out.

Ishaq managed to win the Champ of the Camp Bollywood singing competition, an annual goodwill exercise by a money-transfer firm.

In the years that followed, he became a small celebrity and prepared himself for a breakthrough. He had moved from his shared room into an apartment in the city and launched a part-time singing career, next to his 12-hour shifts at the airport. He had married a Pakistani woman, who could only visit for a few weeks each year, on a tourist visa.

He dined downtown, spent money on his appearance, and carried himself with reckless optimism as if fame and fortune were apps he could download as soon as he got Wi-Fi.

But he felt that no matter how successful he became, he would never be respected as a professional singer. Finally, ten years after his arrival he decided to give up and go home.

It was as if he had become trapped in the narrative that catapulted him—the rags-to-riches story of a guy from the camps—even though the whole world had conspired to see that a singer from the camps would only go so far. 

One thing that's certain, however, is that Collin Ishaq does have a great voice...