The first award ever received in front of thousands of people in Dubai — and the biggest one since arriving in the city in 1998.
Standing on the stage of the Falcon Ballroom, in front of an audience of thousands, was unlike anything else in over a decade in Dubai. Arriving in the city in 1998 with nothing but ambition, being called up on 19 March 2010 to be recognised as the first Ten-Star President's Club member worldwide — just seven years after the company itself began — remains, to this day, one of the most treasured moments of a career built in the UAE.
Mel Gill (left) and Amie Gill (centre) handing over the Ten-Star trophy in person, in front of the "UAE Launch Event, 19th March, 2010" backdrop.
Sonu Sandhu (left) presenting the signed HSBC cheque — the same person who had announced the Ten-Star achievement, early on the morning of 1 January 2010.
A gold medallion plaque under glass, inscribed: "In Recognition of Achieving the Prestigious Honour of Joining The President's Ten Star Weekly Earner's Club" — presented to Eswara Doss Senthil Kumaran.
Set on a mahogany base within a glass display case, the medallion's engraved gold face carries the same inscription as the one read aloud on stage.
The Cheque — HSBC · AED 91,000 · 19/03/2010 — drawn on My Video Talk Technologies FZE and presented on stage, the AED equivalent of $25,000, one half of the $50,000 total earnings behind the Ten-Star recognition.
The stage was dressed for the occasion — gold curtain swags and black-and-gold balloon towers framing a circular backdrop that read "UAE Launch Event, 19th March, 2010," bordered by fresh white lilies and deep red roses. Centre stage, roped off in red satin and gold bows, three enlarged HSBC cheques stood on easels for the audience to see — the middle one made out to Eswara Doss Senthil Kumaran for AED 91,000.
MyVideoTalk operated as a company under Team Effort International, which began in October 2002. At the helm were co-founders Mel Gill (CEO) and Amie Gill, alongside Vice President Sonu Sandhu — the very people who presented this recognition in person on the Falcon Ballroom stage.
A five-star hotel and major conference venue on Airport Road, Garhoud — about 2 kilometres, or a five-minute drive, from Dubai International Airport's Terminal 1, and close to the Airport Terminal 1 Metro Station on the Red Line.
Unlike the trophy and the cheques, this plaque was not physically presented on stage at the UAE Launch Event — it wasn't handed over on the day itself. It came separately, from Champions Dream Achievers, and reads "first person in the Asia Pacific" — though the achievement it marks was in fact the first Ten-Star President's Club membership reached anywhere in the world, seven years after the company began. The plaque and the trophy tell the same story from two different hands.
A year to the day after the original UAE Launch Event, the same Falcon Ballroom backdrop went up again for a follow-up gathering — this time dated 19th March, 2011. Sonu Sandhu, again on hand alongside a fellow MyVideoTalk colleague, marked the occasion once more.
The same trophy design, now inscribed "19th March, 2011" — Sonu Sandhu marking the anniversary alongside a colleague.
Another enlarged cheque presented on the same stage, under a "Building Voice Possibilities" backdrop dated one year on from the original event.
"I had come to Dubai in 1998 with nothing but ambition. On the 19th of March, 2010, I stood in the Falcon Ballroom in front of thousands of people and was recognised as the first Ten-Star President's Club member worldwide — just seven years after the company itself began. It remains one of the most precious awards I have ever received." — Dr. E. Senthil Kumaran