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4 expats from Kerala win Dh25,000 each in Big Ticket's weekly e-draw
One of the winners is a UK resident who came to know of Big Ticket during his layovers at Abu Dhabi
- PUBLISHED: Tue 16 Jun 2026, 5:51 PM
Four Indians, orginally from the state of Kerala, have each won Dh25,000 at Big Ticket's first weekly e-draw for the month of June. Two of them are UAE residents, one lives in Qatar and the other has been living in the UK for the past year.
One of the winners, Afthab Kodakkdan, a 51-year-old business owner from Kerala, has been living in Doha with his family since 2006. He first came across Big Ticket during his frequent travels through the airport and later learned more about it through friends and social media. He has been participating on and off for the past three years.
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Reflecting on his journey, Afthab shared, “I’ve been purchasing tickets online on my own for the last three years. One thing I always do is let my children choose the ticket numbers for me.” Recalling the winning moment, he added, “When I received the call, I initially thought it was a prank. Once I realised it was real, the excitement and happiness slowly started to sink in."
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While Afthab has not yet decided how he will use the cash prize, he revealed that he has already purchased his next ticket in hopes of winning the grand prize. Encouraging others to take part, he added, “I would encourage people to try their luck as Big Ticket is a reliable and genuine platform. You never know when your luck might strike.”
Did not see this coming, says RAK resident
Subairabdu Subair is a 44-year-old supermarket worker from Kerala who has been living in Ras Al Khaimah with his family for the past 13 years. He participates in Big Ticket both independently and as part of a group, and this time chose to do it alone.
When the winning call came through, he could hardly believe it. "I truly did not see this coming," he said, with the excitement still evident in his voice. This is his first time winning.
He intends to use the prize money for his family. He also encouraged everyone around him to give Big Ticket a shot, believing it is an opportunity no one should pass up.
Welcome surprise for Al Ain resident
Safna Pothengal Kader is a 26-year-old from Kerala who resides in Al Ain with her family, and has been participating frequently as part of a group of 21 people for the last few years, with this being the first time the group has struck lucky.
Sharing her reaction, she said: "I am very happy, it is such a good feeling to win." This is her first time winning and the news clearly came as a welcome surprise.
She plans to reinvest his prize money into more tickets, hopeful that this is just the beginning of bigger wins to come.
UK resident gets lucky
Aneesh Abraham, a 30-year-old hospitality professional originally from Kerala, has been residing in the United Kingdom for the past year while his family remains back home. He first came across Big Ticket through social media and during his layovers in Abu Dhabi, and has been participating for a while.
Talking about his journey, Aneesh shared, “I often purchase tickets whenever I have a layover in Abu Dhabi, or from the website when I’m in India. I’ve been taking part for quite some time, and this is my first win. When I received the call, I was actually asleep because of the time difference. Once the news sank in, I was incredibly excited.” He added that the winning ticket had been selected completely at random.
Aneesh said he intends to use the prize money to help settle some of his financial responsibilities. He also confirmed that he plans to continue participating in Big Ticket, adding that he will be purchasing another ticket during his next layover in Abu Dhabi.
This month, one lucky winner will take home the grand prize of Dh25 million during the live draw on July 3. In addition, five winners will each receive Dh1 million, as a consolation prize, giving even more customers the chance to become millionaires this summer.
Three weekly e-draws remain, where four winners will each receive Dh25,000.
