Mazen Laham is a Lebanese television producer and the Founder and Managing Director of Different Productions, the Dubai-based company behind Netflix's Dubai Bling, Desi Bling, It's Ok, Shark Tank Arabia, and more. With more than 25 years in regional television, Laham has built a production career across reality formats, documentaries, studio entertainment, Arabic adaptations, and streaming series for the MENA market.
Best known internationally for his work on Dubai Bling, Laham has become closely associated with the rise of Dubai-based unscripted entertainment on global streaming platforms. His work sits within a broader shift in regional media, as Dubai and the Gulf grow increasingly visible in international reality, documentary, and entertainment formats.
Mazen Laham at a Glance
Name: Mazen Laham Nationality: Lebanese Profession: Television producer and executive producer Company: Different Productions Role: Founder and Managing Director Known for: Dubai Bling, It's Ok, Shark Tank Arabia Industry: Television, streaming, and non-scripted entertainment Region: Middle East and North Africa
Early Career and Background
Mazen Laham is a Lebanese producer and television executive with more than two decades of experience in production and creative development across the Middle East and North Africa.
Over the course of his career, he has worked on television projects from concept development through final production, managing teams across live programming, studio formats, reality shows, documentaries, and location-based shoots.
Laham has served as an executive producer on local and international formats for more than 15 years. His work has involved leading production crews, coordinating with talent and celebrities, and adapting complex projects for regional audiences. His career has also followed the industry's move from traditional broadcast television into global streaming, where regional stories now reach a wider international audience.
Different Productions: Building a Regional Production Company
Laham founded Different Productions in 2014 and has served as its owner and Managing Director since. The company marked its 10th anniversary in April 2024, after a decade of producing entertainment formats, reality series, documentaries, and regional adaptations for broadcasters and streaming platforms.
Under Laham's leadership, Different Productions has worked on titles including Dubai Bling, It's Ok, Shark Tank Arabia, Say Yes to the Dress, Chopped Arabia, Astronauts: Do You Have What It Takes, and Doctors.
Speaking to Arab News around the company's 10th anniversary, Laham said Different Productions approaches Arabic-language adaptations by preserving the original structure of a format while ensuring the content fits regional expectations.
> "Before getting the shows, we make sure that they fit our culture. The most important thing is to keep the structure and the main spirit of the format the same."
Dubai Bling: The Netflix Series That Took His Work Global
Laham's most internationally recognised production is Dubai Bling, the Netflix reality series following a group of wealthy friends living in Dubai. The show attracted global attention for its portrayal of luxury, ambition, relationships, and social life in the emirate.
Laham is credited as an executive producer on the series, which featured cast members including Zeina Khoury, Safa Siddiqui and Fahad Siddiqui, DJ Bliss, Danya Mohammed, Kris Fade, Brianna Fade, Mona Kattan Al-Amin, Hassan Al-Amin, Loujain Adada, Ebraheem Al-Samadi, and Farhana Bodi. Mahira Abdel Aziz and Jwana Karim later joined the cast for season three.
Laham has also been clear about the show's positioning. "We never said that this is Dubai. From day one, we said it is about a group of friends living in Dubai," he told Arab News. "It is not a documentary about the city."
Speaking about the show's international response, he added: "What we were aiming for is to have a good show but we never thought that it will be this successful."
It's Ok: Producing Documentary Content for Netflix
Beyond ensemble reality television, Laham also worked on It's Ok, the Netflix docuseries about Lebanese pop star Elissa. The project expanded Different Productions' profile into serialized documentary storytelling and showed another dimension of the company's non-scripted production work.
For Laham, the strength of modern non-scripted content lies in its ability to keep audiences engaged across episodes.
> "These are non-scripted, but they are serialized and sticky. You want to keep on watching to follow the stories and this is when you binge watch."
Desi Bling and Dubai-Based Reality TV
Laham has also been linked to Desi Bling, a Dubai-set Netflix reality series focused on prominent Indian expatriates navigating social, professional, and personal life in the city.
The show features cast members including Karan Kundrra, Tejasswi Prakash, Satish Sanpal, Tabinda Sanpal, Dyuti Parruck, Iryna Kinakh, Rizwan Sajan, and others.
Desi Bling continues Different Productions' focus on Dubai-based content with international audience potential, connecting the city's luxury, business, and diaspora communities with global streaming viewers.
Upcoming Projects
Different Productions has several projects in development and pre-production. Say Yes to the Dress Dubai has been listed in pre-production with Laham attached as executive producer. Confidence Is Queen has also been listed in development, with Laham attached as producer.
Laham is also developing Unstoppable, an original reality competition for Starzplay. "It's a football-based reality show where children between the ages of 16 and 18 compete. There will be one winner, and the winner will hopefully play for one of the big Italian teams," he said.
Views on the Future of Regional Media
Laham sees Saudi Arabia as one of the most important media markets in the region. "We care a lot about the viewership in Saudi Arabia because it's the biggest market," he said, pointing to the Kingdom's growing production infrastructure and investment in major destinations including Neom and AlUla.
"I think it's going to be the biggest media hub out there very soon," he added.
He has also spoken about the shift in viewing habits between television and streaming. "What is on TV does not work on a platform and vice versa, because the new generation want something fast. They want something that will keep them hooked."
Publicly listed credits, platform information, and company materials connect Mazen Laham and Different Productions to a range of regional and international productions.
Selected Mazen Laham Productions and Credits
Dubai Bling
Dubai Bling is a Netflix reality series set in Dubai, following a group of high-profile personalities, entrepreneurs, and social figures living in the city. Laham is credited as an executive producer on the series through Different Productions.
It's Ok
It's Ok is a Netflix docuseries about Lebanese singer Elissa. The series expanded Different Productions' work beyond ensemble reality television into serialized documentary storytelling.
Desi Bling
Desi Bling is a Dubai-set Netflix reality series focused on prominent Indian expatriates and South Asian personalities living in the city. Laham is executive producer on the project through Different Productions.
Shark Tank Arabia
Shark Tank Arabia is the regional version of the global business reality format, featuring entrepreneurs pitching their companies to a panel of investors. Different Productions has been connected to the Arabic-language adaptation of the format.
Chopped Arabia
Chopped Arabia is the regional version of the competitive cooking format, adapted for Arab audiences. The show reflects Different Productions' work in adapting international entertainment formats for the MENA market.
Astronauts: Do You Have What It Takes
Astronauts: Do You Have What It Takes is a competition-style factual entertainment format. Different Productions has been linked to the Dubai version of the series.
Say Yes to the Dress Dubai
Say Yes to the Dress Dubai has been listed in pre-production, with Laham attached as executive producer.
Confidence Is Queen
Confidence Is Queen has been listed in development, with Laham attached as producer.
Unstoppable
Unstoppable is an original football-based reality competition being developed for Starzplay. The format centres on young players competing for a career-changing opportunity.
FAQ
Who is Mazen Laham? Mazen Laham is a Lebanese television producer and the Founder and Managing Director of Different Productions. He is best known internationally for his work on Netflix's Dubai Bling and for building a regional production company focused on reality, documentary, and entertainment formats.
What is Mazen Laham known for? Mazen Laham is known for producing regional and international television formats through Different Productions. His best-known global credit is Dubai Bling, the Netflix reality series set in Dubai.
What company does Mazen Laham own? Mazen Laham founded Different Productions in 2014 and serves as its Managing Director.
Is Mazen Laham the producer of Dubai Bling? Yes. Mazen Laham is credited as an executive producer on Dubai Bling, the Netflix reality series produced by Different Productions.
What other shows has Mazen Laham produced? Publicly listed credits and company materials connect Laham and Different Productions to titles including Dubai Bling, It's Ok, Shark Tank Arabia, Chopped Arabia, Doctors, Astronauts: Do You Have What It Takes, Say Yes to the Dress Dubai, Desi Bling, and other regional productions and adaptations.
