Dubai is usually sold on its skyline, the Burj Khalifa, the malls, the sheer scale of everything. But for one Indian woman on her first trip to the city, none of that was the highlight. It was the people.
This Indian Woman Says Dubai’s People Left A Bigger Impression On Her Than Its Skyscrapers
A First Trip Built Around People-Watching
Shubhangi Zanan had travelled to Dubai expecting the usual checklist: skyscrapers, luxury shopfronts, and a skyline built to be photographed. Instead, she and her husband ended up parked at a coffee table inside Dubai Mall for over an hour, doing nothing more than watching the crowd go by.
Rather than rushing between attractions, the couple got pulled into something far more ordinary: clothing, jewellery, footwear, handbags, and the small details of how people carried themselves. In a video she later shared on Instagram, Zanan said it was this, more than any building, that stayed with her.
‘I’m Amazed By The People In Dubai’
Zanan didn’t dismiss Dubai’s infrastructure; she called it impressive. But she was clear that it wasn’t what left the strongest impression. Speaking from inside Dubai Mall, she zeroed in on the everyday: the way women around her were dressed, styled and put together, and the general sense of a city that felt as curated at street level as it does from a viewing deck.
For a first-time visitor, it’s a slightly unusual takeaway. Most tourists come back with photos of the fountain show or the world’s tallest building. Zanan came back talking about a mall food court.
More Than Just A Tourist Stop
The clip has since resonated with viewers online, many of whom related to the idea that a city’s real character often shows up in its people rather than its postcard shots. It’s a familiar pattern with Dubai content lately; visitors are increasingly returning home talking not about the Burj Khalifa but about how the city actually feels to move through day to day.
For Zanan, an hour of coffee and people-watching did what a checklist of tourist stops couldn’t; it gave her first Dubai trip an unexpected story to tell.
Cover Image Courtesy: Shubhangi Zanan/Instagram, CanvaPro/ Andrey
FAQs
Who is Shubhangi Zanan?
She's an Indian traveller who shared her first impressions of Dubai in a viral Instagram video, focusing on the city's people rather than its landmarks.
Why did the video go viral?
Viewers connected with her unconventional take, choosing people-watching over sightseeing on a first trip to one of the world's most photographed cities.