Chai isn’t just a drink in the UAE, it’s part of the daily fabric. You’ll find people grabbing a cup of the beloved karak on the way to work, after dinner, or during late-night drives. That small ritual is what inspired friends and former colleagues Ahmed Kazim and Justin Joseph to start Project Chaiwala in 2017. What began as a pop-up serving karak at local events has grown into one of the UAE’s most recognisable chai brands, now brewing at places like Cinema Akil and Dubai Airport.
We spoke to the duo about friendship, starting a business from scratch and how they’re putting UAE-style chai on the map.
The Beginning
How did your friendship first spark the idea for Project Chaiwala? Was there a specific moment when you both realised that chai could turn into a business?
Ahmed and I met while we were colleagues at Deloitte, working as consultants within Financial Advisory. Before becoming friends, we were drawn together by our shared ambition to become entrepreneurs and for months, we exchanged ideas that we could explore together.
We shared the same values and business aspirations, which we usually discussed over a cup of karak. Very soon, we realised the business idea we were looking for was right in our hands. That moment sparked the journey that took us to the tea estates of Darjeeling and the streets of Kolkata, where we tried cups of chai from the legendary street chaiwalas.
Over that trip is when we came up with the name Project Chaiwala, inspired by the recipes and the tea drinking culture, which is South Asian but also a core part of our culture growing up in Dubai.
Why Chai Works in the UAE
The UAE has a unique relationship with chai. What was it about the local chai culture that made you believe there was room for a homegrown concept like Project Chaiwala?
As an Indian growing up in Dubai in the 1990s and Ahmed as an Emirati, we both shared a common cultural overlap of grabbing a roadside karak. It is an emblematic part of the Dubai lifestyle and brings together people from many nationalities who coexist in this wonderful country. While Chai came onto the shores from the Indian subcontinent, it became uniquely “Karak” here and now represents this country and its heritage. Project Chaiwala is an ode to this heritage, but also to the street culture we experienced in our youth and it is part of our vision to export this to the rest of the world.
Finding Their Identity
You started with small pop-ups before expanding into multiple outlets across the UAE. What were some of the defining moments that helped shape Project Chaiwala’s identity along the journey?
As a brand, we have had quite a journey since our first pop-up in 2017 at Etisalat Beach Canteen. This started as an event circuit where we popped up across the UAE with our “Chaiwala experience,” giving new customers a taste of our products. This allowed us to test our recipes and engage directly with our audience as founders, sharing our vision and passion.
This momentum then led us to open our first location in the region’s first arthouse cinema, Cinema Akil, in Al Serkal Avenue, in 2018. Our success propelled us to open 6 locations across the UAE over the next couple of years, including Dubai Media City, Ibn Battuta, Zahia City Centre, ENBD Head Office and Timeout Market Dubai.
With the onset of COVID, our cafe operations were critically impacted, leading us to shut down many of our locations and revisit our business model to be less reliant on incoming foot traffic. We expanded our delivery operations during this time, but most importantly, we began aggressive product development to create our consumer packaged goods offering and develop unique product collaborations.
We also launched our food services and hospitality offering. While this was a challenging turning point, it has been a great defining moment that got us thinking outside the box and created a truly omni-channel business, which was not dependent on one revenue stream.
The Trip That Changed Everything
You’ve both spoken about visiting Indian tea estates and ensuring ethical sourcing. Could you share a memorable experience or lesson from those trips?
There were so many great moments during our initial trip as we spent time on the ground at the source of tea. Not only did we learn a great deal about the process and what goes into crafting that perfect cup but we also engaged closely with key people across tea estates, from owners and managers to tea picker communities on the ground.
It inspired the human element of the brand and what “Chaiwala” stands for us. It represents all the people and their hard work that goes into the whole value chain and shows how tea is not just a commodity.
One memorable experience was meeting with a tea estate owner, Rajah Bannerjee, who is comes from a family that has the oldest tea estate in Darjeeling. You can think of him as the Indiana Jones of Tea. He shared his adventures and stories of his tea estate, which is much more like a forest. As budding entrepreneurs, we got to meet a legend in the tea industry in India, and he even blessed us with a tea ceremony to wish us good fortune on our entrepreneurial journey!
More Than a Café
When people step into a Project Chaiwala outlet, what do you want them to feel? How do you define a ‘premium chai experience’?
It is a complete sensory experience, from the aromas of the spices while the chai is brewing, the visual of the steam from the chai pots, the chants of the chaiwalas or the stretched out pour into your cup till the first sip. We don’t make false promises, we just want to provide an authentic tea experience, inspired by tradition, in an urban setting, while ensuring our product is of the highest quality.
In a city full of cafés, what makes Project Chaiwala stand out?
As an omni-channel brand, we are more than just a cafe concept. We are a lifestyle chai brand which is driven by our mission of “Brewing Tradition, Blending Innovation”. We are unique in that we are a homegrown chai company from Dubai, celebrating the diverse urban culture while also positioning ourselves for a global audience. In this sense, we do not consider other cafes our competition; we are building something long-term, with continuous innovation and expansion along the way.
The Founders
How do you divide creative and operational responsibilities ss co-founders from different cultural backgrounds?
Justin: We might be from different origins, but living in Dubai and experiencing the culture here, made it easy for us to connect. I am an Indian, but I grew up in Dubai and consider this my home. From the outset, it was clear that we brought different strengths to the table and this business allowed us to cultivate our aspirations accordingly. I focus on the brand’s creative and marketing elements.
Ahmed: As an Emirati who grew up in Dubai, I have been exposed to the city’s diverse range of cultures from a young age. India and the UAE share a long-standing history and our cultures are interlinked. Actually, karak is a great symbol of this mix, as reflected in our partnership. While we share responsibilities across the board as partners, I focus on the operational aspects of the business.
The balance works, one handles ideas, the other execution, both shaped by growing up in the same city.
Looking Ahead
What were some of the biggest challenges you faced while turning the idea into a functioning business?
We have faced many obstacles and challenges along the way but we have learned to see them as opportunities and to pivot and find new solutions. As new entrepreneurs, we quickly discovered that we had to handle multiple facets of the business while ensuring it continued to function successfully. Without it being an exhaustive list, challenges ranged from fundraising, the COVID impact, hiring employees who were not a good fit, supply chain and logistics.
Our shared values, drive and vision for the business ensured that we, as founders, approached every opportunity with a solution-oriented mindset. It has been a long journey, but in hindsight, we see many of the challenges as key opportunities that helped us excel.
Beyond serving great chai, what kind of brand culture or community do you hope to build through Project Chaiwala?
Our brand culture is dynamic, urban and unique to us. We speak to a global audience while staying true to our third culture roots in the UAE. As a lifestyle brand, we have collaborated with brands such as Converse, Oatly and many large hospitality chains. We are on a mission to reimage how Chai is perceived. We are no longer only steeped in tradition but want to build an inclusive community through music events such as our very own “Karak Groove Session” or a limited, exclusive merch drop with Dubai Tourism. We don’t see any boundaries to what we can do as a Chai brand.
You’ve mentioned wanting to make ‘UAE-style chai’ a global phenomenon. What does that mean to you, and how do you see it translating to new markets or formats?
Project Chaiwala is on a mission to take our product and culture to the rest of the world. We envision our brand in every major country. Most recently, we did a pop-up at South by Southwest (SXSW’25) in Austin, Texas, where we were part of the Museum of the Future, Dubai’s flagship activation. We served more than 10,000 cups of chai and 2,000 bottles of our iced chai collection over 4 days.
The response was phenomenal and further validated our brand’s potential worldwide. Since opening our locations at Dubai Airport T3, we have gained exposure to more than 80 million global passengers annually, which has brought in many more opportunities. We are ready for the world and see many entry points depending on the nature of the markets.
What excites you most about the next year for Project Chaiwala? Are there new products, collaborations, or locations you’re particularly looking forward to?
We have recently launched our collection of consumer packaged products, including a range of handcrafted loose tea blends, instant chai mixes, and the never-before-seen ready-to-drink Iced Chais. We have already launched across ENOC outlets in the UAE and are incredibly excited to launch at Spinneys supermarkets and other quick commerce channels such as Noon, Careem and Amazon. It’s exciting to see that our products will now be available across multiple channels.
We also have some big news regarding our global expansion on the way. We are very excited for the next phase of Project Chaiwala, which sees us serving our beloved products across the world. We are also launching new products and collaborating with global brands along the way. 2026 is going to be a big year for Project Chaiwala.
The Takeaway
Looking back at where you started, what are you most proud of?
We are most proud of sticking true to our mission and vision even when we faced challenges and obstacles. One of the biggest motivators has been our partnership as founders and how we have leveraged each other’s strengths and supported each other in staying focused. We’re proud of every milestone along the way, from small wins to major moments like opening at Dubai Airport. The whole journey to date has been exciting, and we are excited about what the next phase will bring.
