Indian resident Ayaz Abbas Karai speaking to The Peninsula. Pic: Salim Matramkot/The Peninsula
Doha: As the whole country gears up for the National Day celebration tomorrow, patriotic fervour is richly palpable in the atmosphere as gigantic Qatari flags and other celebratory maroon-and-white symbols are conspicuously displayed in every corner.
On this significant occasion, one Doha resident has found his way to express his love and gratitude to a country he missed for two decades and calls his second home.
“With the National Day celebration and as the World Cup inches closer, I want to create awareness among people of this concept of mine which is my way of showing love to Qatar,” Ayaz Abbas Karai told The Peninsula about a logo he created as a tribute to Qatar in which he artistically merges the English and Arabic scripts of “Doha” with 2022 written below.
“This is just my small contribution which I hope people will be happy and proud of,” added the Indian resident who just returned to Doha three months ago having been away for 20 years.
“I worked in Doha from 1995 to 1999. Then I went to other places including Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Dubai, but I have always had a liking for this country. People here are good,” he said.
On what brought him back after many years, he said: “The charm of this country. I’ve always liked Doha. Even when I was in Dubai and South Africa, I’ve always missed Doha because it’s like a second home to me. I stayed here for almost five years. I like the people here. They are very good and kindhearted. It’s a small country but has many different cultures. I’ve made friends here, some of whom are citizens.”
On why he chose to create a logo as tribute to Qatar, he said “A logo is very powerful. It represents a company and in this case, a nation.”
The logo he created has also a strong reference to the much anticipated FIFA World Cup to be hosted in Doha in 2022.
“World Cup is a big occasion for all the Qataris and expatriates here who feel proud about Qatar, who love Qatar and I want this feeling to be in everybody’s heart. They should be proud living in Qatar. This (logo) is for all those who love Qatar,” he added.
