Our joy our pride: XPRESS at five

DUBAI: For five years, we've worked round the clock to bring you news beyond the breaking news; we looked under every nook and cranny to uncover controversies; we've given you a voice when you wanted to be heard; we've gone undercover, investigated and exposed scams; we've made you laugh, we've made you cry… For five years we've been a part of your life, and you of ours.

And on Monday night, XPRESS celebrated those five years with an all-stops-removed anniversary party at The Address Dubai Marina.

From XPRESS banners at the reception, leading up to the venue (a private area in the Mazina restaurant); an XPRESS-wall photo booth; various XPRESS-related memorabilia, including a branded candy display from Candelite!; and a goody bag of delights to take home, XPRESS' fifth anniversary party left no stone unturned.

While clients, advertisers, guests and well-wishers mingled with the XPRESS team, networking, sipping on their beverages and making the most of the moment, staff worked behind the scenes to prepare an unforgettable bash.

As XPRESS' homegrown talent Fermel Fuentes, along with his band, set the evening on fire with a musical set of Broadway, pop era and jazz tunes, the mood brightened. Ties loosened, guests mingled and the anticipation grew.

The night kicked into gear with speeches from Bobby Naqvi, Editor of XPRESS; Nirmala Janssen, Publishing Director, Supplements, Contract Publishing and Commercial Printing, Gulf News; and Abdul Hamid Ahmad, Executive Director Publications, Al Nisr Publishing, and Editor-In-Chief of Gulf News and XPRESS.

"Every Thursday, it's the stories from XPRESS that get the most hits on the Gulf News website," said Ahmad, adding, "Though XPRESS was launched as a weekly the aim was to make it a daily eventually. That dream is still alive."

Five years on

Giving an insight into the XPRESS journey so far, Naqvi said: "Five years ago when we launched this little tabloid, many said many things about XPRESS. They didn't believe us when we said we will investigate, go beyond the news, highlight suffering, achievements and injustice… but in the last five years, we have proved our sceptics wrong.

"When pilots of an airline were spooked by ghosts at a hotel in Sharjah, we checked into the hotel to see if it was haunted. When we heard about job scams, we posed as job applicants. When we heard about the bloody bootlegging battles in labour camps, we went to a booze bazaar as buyers…

"Yes, we're a tabloid newspaper, but we practise responsible journalism."

Janssen, who launched the paper in 2007 as its first editor, then took us all on a trip down memory lane, sharing her experience of the paper's early days. "People said XPRESS would never be able to handle controversies. Well… we've proved them wrong.

"XPRESS captures at least 250,000 eyeballs in Dubai each Thursday. It's a bold, no-nonsense weekly with heart and a great sense of humour that touches lives at every level."

The evening also included a short film - a story behind our stories, a glimpse of the team that brings out this courageous little tabloid each week.

As guests sat down to a sumptuous buffet over jazz tunes by Fuentes, Jose Tabois and Januel Magtibay, there was a celebratory mood in the air.

Everyone agreed it was five years well spent. And if we could do it for five years, there's no reason to stop any time soon. We may get bigger; we may even get better. But one thing will never change. We'll continue to publish great content. We'll continue to demystify the news. And we'll always go beyond the obvious.