Mai & Dayana: a true spirit of cross-cultural collaboration

Emirati, Mai Rashed and Russian national Dayana Tertyshnaya take their friendship ahead into a successful collaboration.

Some six years back, in the early days of Dialight M.E, Dayana Tertyshnaya; the founder of Dialight M.E had placed an online ad to promote the services offered by the company and Mai Rashed (on a quest to find expert photographers for a friend’s event) had immediately responded.

The two met for the first time and an instant friendship was born.

Fast forward several months later, and Mai would once again reach out to Dayana but this time she required Dialight’s services for her own engagement ceremony. As time went by these two working women began to identify the power of their personal friendship to create something wholly new and thus Dialight Production and Fleur Du Desert was born.

Dialight Production 

Having witnessed the exceptional talent and efforts of Dialight’s all-female team with regional brides, Mai and Dayana created Dialight Studio. A brick-and-mortar space that wouldn’t just double as the brands headquarter, but offer corporate entities, designers and creatives the ability to use it as both a studio and as private event space.

Fleur Du Desert

Fleur Du Desert would bring opulence to the homes and lives of the regions flower connoisseurs through meticulously crafted arrangements combining the opulence of Mai’s Middle Eastern background with the finery of European sensibilities.

As Dialight makes its way through its seventh year and Dialight Production and Fleur Du Desert respectively find their footing in the region, Dayana and Mai continue to highlight the importance of women in the workforce through leading by example. Dayana Tertyshnaya      was also a speaker at this year’s TEDxBarsha Heights event where she spoke about the many challenges women have to overcome in order to be respected and recognized in the entrepreneurial space.

Dayana Tertyshnaya

Dayana Maria Tertyshnaya is a Russian-born Dubai-based businesswoman and entrepreneur behind Dialight M.E, Dialight Production and Fleur Du Desert. Dayana who started photography as a hobby studied in I.E Business School, Madrid and would often travel to Dubai,U.A.E on holiday where she eventually began working with a photography/videography business. However, just three months in, she realized her work experience ( her mother allowed her to manage a family-owned business at an early age) paired with her unique vision meant that she could do the job on her own terms – and do it better. Having launched her business aged just 23 after identifying a gap in the region for quality wedding photography and videography services. Today, six years since inception Dialight M.E has become a go-to for Dubai’s elite seeking exceptional quality imagery for their special day.Dayana along with her business partner Mai Rashid also launched Dialight Production; a space for entrepreneurs and corporate entities & most recently Fleur Du Desert; a luxury flower company. 

Mai Rashed

Mai Rashed is a humble Emirati entrepreneur and working mother of two that isn’t always the keenest on interviews but possesses a savvy understanding for the inner workings of the Arab-world. This is precisely what lead to her forming a relationship with Dayana when the two met for the first time after Mai responded to an ad that Dayana had placed to advertise Dialight’s services. From the moment they met a relationship was born out of a deep mutual respect for another. This is what would eventually lead to the start of Dialight Production & Fleur Du Desert. Mai; a Dubai-native also believes in the spirit of authentic partnerships as the key towards growth and long-lasting business which ultimately creates the basis of a successful economy in the emirate.

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