For one reason or another i'll be arriving by dhow or similar small boat into india without my original passport, i will have a photocopy though.
Can anyone give me advice? I've "lost" it en route btw...

I was kindly reminded of Mary Tyler's book. I think it is, My Years in an Indian Jail. Don't be a loser, stop at the embassy in the country you are in and get a new one from the embassy..

as long as you plan to leave the same way and not cross any immigration, you should be fine.
are u the carrier?

I'm not bringing anything in, just me, I'm using India as a way to get out of the UAE without a passport, more info hereMiddle East Link
It's a means to an end, and I'm planning on getting apassport from the British Embassy when i get there. I will have a copy of my pp, but not the original..
You will run into all sorts of problems... Like immigration having no record of you entering the Country, plus the little matter of illegal entry to India, all of this will come to the surface when you try and apply for a new passport.. The only option is to come clean to the immigration officer on entry and hope for the best, not trying to put a downer on you but i think you will spend sometime in a immigration detention center and you say that you have a photo copy of your passport, i hope that you have a valid Indian Visa on your old passport.. To be honest you will most likely be detained and returned back to the UAE and then it's leaving the UAE by an illegal means i.e not getting an exit stamp, cant understand why you have not applied for a new passport in the UAE.. Good Luck and let us know how you get on..