Jailer actor Vasanth Ravi is among the Indian celebrities who are stranded in Dubai due to the ongoing conflict between Iran and the United States-Israel coalition. The actor spoke to us on experiencing war firsthand, the on-ground situation, and how he plans to get back to India with his family…
We came here four days back. Appa had some work here, and he wanted me to come. It was all fine until that first attack happened in Abu Dhabi when things started to change. But while flights have been cancelled, schools are closed and people have been advised to work from home if possible, the city continues its regular operations and everything else is functioning as normal.
And people are also stepping out of their homes. I went to a mall on Sunday. I was told that the place is crowded on weekends, but on that day, it was only 20%. That’s the case with other touristy places as well. But people are stepping out, but it’s very limited. I think eventually things will return to normal.
There is talk that prices of essentials, like vegetables and grocery items, will shoot up soon if this situation continues because many of the items are imported and stocks might not last long.
Iran and Dubai are very close, separated by a stretch of sea, so we’re experiencing war firsthand. As Iran’s missiles fly over the skies here, they are being intercepted, and the debris keeps falling on the city. That’s the major anxiety as you do not know where the next missile is going to come from and you cannot predict where the debris might hit. My parents have lived through a range of situations and Appa was saying that this was their first experience of a war situation. But they have been strong so far, because they believe Dubai will withstand this situation.
The government has assured that they will take care of the accommodation and food of the over 20,000 who were stranded at the airport on the first day of the attack. We are staying in a hotel and there are rooms available. We were supposed to leave for India on Monday, but have asked the hotel to extend our stay given the flight situation. And since there’s no inflow, hotels across the city have been letting tourists extend their stay. Restaurants are also open across the city.
We are all waiting for air travel to open. That said, I’m also exploring the option of driving to Muscat from here by car and taking a flight from there. But I’m told flights from Oman, though operational, are all full. I’m planning to assess and then take this option in a day or two if the situation continues to be the same here.
