Date: Dubai, Feb 26, 2026

For the last 22 years, Sudhakar R. Rao has called the UAE home. He has watched Dubai transform from a city where the Burj Khalifa was still just an excavation site into the global metropolis it is today. But throughout that journey, one thing that has consistently impressed the 66-year-old is the spirit of Ramadan.

This year, Sudhakar, along with his brother Prabhakar and his daughter Aishwarya, is continuing to do his part to honour that spirit. The trio, who run Gemini Group Real Estate Developments, are on a mission to distribute 30,000 iftar meals to labourers across Dubai.

“We have been doing this for the last five or six years,” Sudhakar told Khaleej Times. “Initially, it was smaller in number. This time, we are giving 1,000 meals per day for the full 30 days.”

From 250 meals to full-scale operation

What started as a modest effort of 250 meals per day has now grown into a full-scale operation. But for Sudhakar, the scale is less important than the sincerity of the gesture. “What is more important for us is to reach the real labour camps and the poor labourers,” he emphasized. “My brother, my daughter and I go and see that everything is fine, that the food is of good quality. We do it very sincerely. Whatever we do, we do it religiously.”

The family makes it a point to visit the camps several times during the month, not just to oversee the distribution, but to connect with the workers. “We go to make sure that people feel good,” he said. The response has been heartwarming. Sudhakar notes that camp bosses have even sent personal messages thanking the family for their efforts.

For Sudhakar, who has been in business since the age of 26 — first in the oil and gas sector and now in real estate — the act of giving is not tied to any religious obligation. It is simply personal. When asked why this work is so important to him, he paused before answering. “I do not have an immediate and direct answer,” he admitted. “But we feel good about it. There is no compulsion from anybody. It just comes spontaneously.”

That spontaneity has also extended to other causes. “When the Pulwama attack took place in India in 2019, we donated a large sum to the victims’ families,” he recalled.

Despite stepping back from the daily grind of the office, Sudhakar remains active, splitting his time between his business interests in the UAE, Oman, and India. But during Ramadan, his focus is firmly on the community around him.