Indian expats behind giant UAE flag in Sheikh Hamdan's viral Dubai Run video

Dubai: Remember the massive UAE flag that was a major highlight during this year's Dubai Run and got featured in Sheikh Hamdan's video of the world's largest free community run?

The aerial view of the giant flag, shared by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, captured hearts across social media and became an instant viral sensation.

Sheikh Hamdan’s Dubai Run video has gone viral, garnering 10 million views on Instagram alone. The Dubai residents carrying the flag—featured as the second shot in the video, right after the sweeping view of the sea of runners—could not contain their pride and happiness.

Meet the Dubai Bearys—the members of the Beary community from India who carried the stunning 30-metre-long and three-metre-wide UAE national flag through the iconic Sheikh Zayed Road on November 23.

More than 1,600 members of the Indian expat community gathered for this year's Dubai Run as part of the Dubai Fitness Challenge 2025, which attracted a record-breaking participation of over 307,000 people of all ages and abilities.

The spectacular initiative was born from careful planning that began more than a month before the event, Ikram Mohammed Moolur, a core committee member of the Dubai Beary community, told Gulf News.

A dedicated core team of 20 volunteers worked tirelessly to mobilise community members and coordinate what would become one of the most memorable moments of the run, he said.

"One of our key ideas was to carry a massive UAE national flag during the run, a gesture that symbolised unity, gratitude and love for our second home," Ikram explained.

The team initially considered creating a 200-metre-long banner but decided against it to avoid affecting the crowd. Instead, they purchased a ready-made UAE flag from the Irani Market in Deira.

"This idea was proposed by one of our core team members, Hidayath Addoor, and we gladly accepted his suggestion," Ikram said.

Other members included Samad Birali Uchila, Shamsuddin Piligudu, Fatima Addulla, Ashraf Shah, Saleem Moodabidri, Abdul Rahiman Honnavar, Muhammad Ashiq, Nawaz Bajar, Akbar Nadupadvu, Razak Busthani, Nawaz Kotekar, Shukur Ullal, Yusuf Sheikh, Mohammed Ayub, Nazeer Wamanjoor, Firoz Ahamad, Naufal Madantiyar and Sannan Siddiq Moodbidri.

Around 1,400 participants wore custom-made red Beary T-shirts for the Dubai Run, creating a striking visual presence among the massive crowd wearing the blue T-shirt for this year’s event. The core team used a Google Form to track T-shirt sizes and manage distribution.

On the day of the Dubai Run, the Beary participants reached the Dubai World Trade Centre area by 5.30am to ensure smooth coordination.

"The excitement was so overwhelming that many of our participants, including women and children, could hardly sleep the night before, eagerly waiting to be part of this grand event," said Ikram.

"Managing a group of over 1,600 runners among more than 300,000 participants was a challenge. We instructed all our members to gather at Al Garhoud Metro Station, where ample parking and access facilities were available. What we witnessed on the day felt nothing short of a national celebration," he added.

The enthusiastic team holding the flag received a special shoutout from presenter Katie Overy who described it as an “unbelievable sight.”

The Beary community across the world is now proud of the initiative, said Hidayath, who came up with the flag idea.

“It has become a proud, unforgettable moment for Bearys around the world. Sheikh Hamdan’s video featuring our initiative felt like the best reward for our weeks' of hard work. When the video hit millions of views, we became prouder and happier. It is so nice to see the visuals of the flag getting circulated when we are proudly celebrating the UAE's National Day, Eid Al Etihad. The whole experience has inspired us to plan even more events,” he said.

"We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Government of Dubai for organising such an inspiring initiative and for continuously encouraging residents to embrace fitness and community spirit," he added.

The Beary (also spelled as Byari) community is a Muslim community predominantly residing in the Tulu Nadu region of south Indian state of Karnataka. They are known for their rich cultural identity and their distinct Beary language, which is spoken by more than 1.5 million people. The name 'Beary' is believed to come from the word “Byara/Byaru,” meaning trade.

Bearys incorporate the local Tulu culture of Dakshina Kannada and diverse traditions of the Moplahs of the Malabar coast stretching along Kerala's northern shoreline.

The community is widely respected for promoting communal harmony and contributing positively to local culture and social development. Bearys are also known for their multilingual abilities, being one of the few communities fluent in Kannada, Tulu, Hindi, Urdu, Konkani, Malayalam and Tamil.

There are an estimated 40,000 Bearys in the UAE. In February, the community gathered more than 10,000 people for the Beary Mela event at Etisalat Academy Dubai.