A group of friends started their New Year with a bang after scooping the biggest jackpot in the Big Ticket weekly draw in Abu Dhabi, taking home Dh25 million.
Lady luck was on Al Ain resident Haridasan Vasunni’s side last month when the 35-year-old bought the Dh500 ticket on December 30 at Abu Dhabi International Airport.
The cost of the ticket was split between 15 friends and now each will take home about Dh1.5m.
“I was at home when I received the call," he said.
"At first I thought it was a joke. I purchased this ticket with my friends and some of them were watching the live draw.
"One of them later called me and informed me that we were all millionaires. It was such an amazing feeling”.
Living in the UAE since 2008, Mr Vasunni works at a fire emergency services company and said he has been buying tickets for the draw for a long time.
"If you want to win, you have to keep trying."
Six winners took home a cash prize in the latest draw, starting from Dh70,000 up to the staggering Dh25m jackpot.
Another lucky winner, Ashok Kumar Koneru, won a new set of wheels, walking away with a Maserati Ghibli.
Big Ticket is the region's largest and longest-running raffle for cash prizes and luxury cars.
This month, participants have three chances to hit another impressive jackpot.
On January 9, 17 and 24, a lucky winner could take home Dh22m in the grand prize. The colossal jackpot will also be up for grabs in the first draw of February.
As part of the weekly draw, a guaranteed cash prize of Dh250,000 will also be given away to one lucky winner each week.
In addition to the Big Ticket cash prize draws, there are also a range of Dream Car promotions in which customers can purchase tickets for the chance to win amazing luxury cars every month.
The cost of the Dream Car ticket is Dh150 and, as with the cash prize, if you buy two, you get one free.
Last month, Bijesh Bose, an Indian resident in his 30s, won the Big Ticket weekly draw just two days after his wife gave birth to twins.
The Sharjah resident received the happy news that he had won Dh1m during a hospital visit to see the newborns.
Earlier in November, a Pakistani resident who won Dh15m said the money would help him to build a better future for his family.
Shahed Mahmood, 35, was the November winner of the Fantastic 15 Million draw.
Mr Mahmood, who works for a glass installation company in the capital, bought the ticket with a friend and will split the winnings with him equally.
Abu Dhabi's Big Ticket past winners - in pictures
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UAE residents who struck lucky with Abu Dhabi's Big Ticket draw attended a gala dinner. Organisers of the draw celebrated the winners' good luck at the Alexandra Dhow Cruise in Dubai Marina. All photos by Leslie Pableo / The National -
Richard Isaac and Bouchra Yamani, the two presenters who pick out the raffle tickets and call the winners, interacted with the winners. Some of attendees had won jackpots of between Dh1 million to Dh15 million, while others won Dh90,000 -
'The National' spoke to winners about how they have spent their grand prize. Shivamurthy Gali Krishnappa won Dh12 million last month. He said he wants to save for his children's future. For now, he is still working as a mechanical engineer for a stainless steel production company -
Shahed Ahmed Moulvifaiz, a Bangladeshi car garage owner in Al Ain, won Dh10 million less than a week ago. He wants to bring his family to the UAE, expand his business and spend on his youngest son's education -
Jayaprakash Mariyan Philip had won the Dh1 million prize with nine other people. The funds were split equally, leaving him with Dh100,000. He said he has paid off part of his bank loans -
Zaheenn Kausar was visiting her husband in Abu Dhabi from Pakistan, when he bought a ticket under her name. She proved lucky for her family after winning Dh90,000. She wants to pay for her daughter's university tuition and buy a car for herself -
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, more than 5,000 people would gather during a live event in Abu Dhabi to watch the draw take place. Since 2020, the draw streams live on social media channels, bringing in even larger crowds -
Many people buy multiple tickets together and then split the prize equally. There are also those who win after buying a ticket alone, allowing them to keep the entire jackpot -
The Abu Dhabi Big Draw has been changing lives since 1992 -
The ticket for the grand prize costs Dh500
