A Sense Of Belonging

Jishad Hyderali, Qatar

Jishad Hyderali is Procurement Coordinator for a facility management company. He has lived in Qatar since 1990. As part of the GOALS program, Jishad tells his story of his early football career, the inspiration of his father, and the role sport plays in the Indian community in Qatar.

My name is Jishad Hyderali. I was born in India but grew up in Qatar. I have always loved football and it helped me settle in Doha.

I have played football for as long as I can remember. One of my earliest memories is when I scored two goals for my school team when I was seven. I felt elation, a sense of joy and accomplishment. I also remember a sense of being valued amongst friends, a sense of belonging.

This has stayed with me, and today you might find me on a Thursday night at the Corniche in Doha, trying to score another goal, and find that elation and sense of belonging.

Throughout my life, football has helped me meet friends from all over the world, from Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, Sudan, Somalia, and Nigeria. We are diverse, from different cultures and countries, and speak different languages, but the language we speak together is football.

The FIFA World Cup makes this a unique year in Qatar. I have nine tickets to games! One of the highlights for me will be watching Brazil v Serbia. I have followed Brazil in every World Cup, and now I will see them live. I remember Romario being the star of the show in ‘94. Now I get to see the current stars, and of course, I get to see Neymar.

My family settled in Doha in 1990; a lot has changed. My Dad was only 20 years old; he moved the family for a better standard of living and to support our family back home. It is a familiar story, and the Indian community is the largest in Qatar.

Cricket and football are crucial to the Indian community in Doha. As a kid, I dreamed of becoming a football player, and as a goalkeeper, I got an opportunity to play for Al-Gharafa Sports Club in early 2005. However, throughout my life, my studies and career have come first; I learned this from my parents. I was supported in sports and extracurricular activities, but make no mistake, studies came first.

I studied commerce and economics, and business management. Education has helped me with skills as an adult, and it has also given me beautiful opportunities, not least through travel. I have studied in Bangalore and London, which has given me greater confidence through the diversity of friends I have made and my experiences.

In Bangalore, I met students from the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Myanmar, and Bhutan. Multiculturalism and sports go hand-in-hand; that is why we organized the Dayananda Sagar International Festival. We would play basketball, football, and athletics whilst celebrating incredible culture and food.

Now in Doha I work in Procurement for TDGIServ, a facility management company. I also started learning Arabic in Qatar, and now I speak quite well, but the slang pronunciations are still challenging to understand!

Since childhood, I have always been an extrovert, and try to develop good relationships with people. I inherited this skill from my father; he was a crucial person in our community, a member of many associations, and a master of socializing. While a bank teller in Doha, he created a steel factory and an engineering college back home in India.

When I have been at my loneliest, I think of him, which gives me the determination to get back out there. That is why I am so committed to nonprofits and associations. I am not someone who wants to stay alone.

The Chavakkad Pravasi Association is a community organization and our goal is to serve the Indian community here in Qatar and back at home.  In April 2022 we organized an international cricket tournament with 12 teams from the Asian community, known as “CPA Cricket League 2022”.

I advise young people to dream big and aim high. Opportunities begin with talking to someone new.  This is also my advice to my daughter.

My daughter was born in India and raised in Qatar; we named her after Sheikha Hanadi. Under her leadership, Qatar has built a foundation for women's education in entrepreneurship and success. My daughter has a bright future here based on education, quality of life, and opportunities. And who knows, maybe she will also make friendships through football!