The family of an aspiring Indian model tragically killed in a horror bus crash in Dubai have paid tribute to their beloved "superstar".
Roshni Moolchandani, 22, was one of 17 passengers whose lives were cut short when a bus travelling from Muscat crashed into a sign post on Thursday evening.
On Sunday, relatives scattered petals over an urn containing Moolchandani's ashes and recited prayers a day after a funeral service was completed at a crematorium in Jebel Ali.
Her injuries were so severe that her body could not be sent to India for last rites. Instead, her family flew to Dubai from Ajmer in northern India’s Rajasthan state.
A crowd of friends and colleagues, who gathered on Saturday evening for her cremation, overwhelmed her family.
“Nobody can stop their tears when they remember her,” said Sapna Moolchandani about her younger sister.
“She was in Dubai for such a short time but the number of people at her funeral was more than what we expected in India. There were so many friends, photographers, designers. It made us feel like the entire city was crying for her.”
With 53,000 followers on Instagram, Moolchandani had aimed to make waves as a model.
“This was an incomplete dream but we will remember her as our superstar. She came to Dubai to follow her dreams,” her sister said.
“She always said she would be a superstar, however much time it took. She wanted the world to know her name. She wanted to be number one.”
Moolchandani also left her mark at the Five Palm Jumeirah, where she oversaw the hotel’s social media accounts.
“Roshni made a huge impact on our team,” said Claire Lay, director of marketing and communications at Five Hospitality.
“Roshni was young, bright, bubbly, fun and one of the most positive people to work with. A model in her spare time, Roshni would go to great lengths to find the best outfit in the most exotic location. Her sheer determination made all of us smile.
“Her death is a huge loss to us all. Her smiling face and zest for life will be deeply missed.”
To her conservative family with no ties to fashion, Moolchandani was unusual and special.
Her father is the editor and owner of a local health newspaper, while her elder sister works in the software industry in Ajmer.
As a college student in Pune in western India, Moolchandani began competing in beauty pageants, winning many crowns.
She left India two years ago with dreams of catwalk success in Dubai.
“We are a normal, quiet family and cannot imagine the steps she took in her life,” Sapna Moolchandani said.
“Roshni had the belief to follow her passion but she remained a strong support for the family. She was our everything.”
Moolchandani's last conversation was with her younger brother Darpan. She told him she was heading back to Dubai after a great vacation in Salalah spending the Eid break with friends.
The Moolchandani family will soon return to India to complete the last rituals.
They will scatter Roshni’s ashes over the Beas River in Punjab after a 12-day mourning period during which ceremonies will be performed in Roshni’s home in Ajmer.
The family had a special word of thanks for Indian consulate officials, local authorities and the hotel who helped get them to the UAE and worked through the night to complete paperwork to release her body.
“These rituals are sacred to us because we pray for the peace of her soul so it was important for us to get the body in time and complete her cremation.”
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
How to avoid crypto fraud
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
Remaining fixtures
- August 29 – UAE v Saudi Arabia, Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
- September 5 – Iraq v UAE, Amman, Jordan (venue TBC)
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
Brief scores:
England: 290 & 346
Sri Lanka: 336 & 243
The Africa Institute 101
Housed on the same site as the original Africa Hall, which first hosted an Arab-African Symposium in 1976, the newly renovated building will be home to a think tank and postgraduate studies hub (it will offer master’s and PhD programmes). The centre will focus on both the historical and contemporary links between Africa and the Gulf, and will serve as a meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, plays, musical performances and more. In fact, today it is hosting a symposium – 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction that will look at the six decades of Frank Bowling’s career, as well as those of his contemporaries that invested social, cultural and personal meaning into abstraction.
