The paths of these two stars have intersected on several occasions due to their association with the luxury brand Bulgari
entertainment5 hours ago
Indian expat Tojo Mathew received the perfect farewell gift as he bid goodbye to the UAE. The 30-year old civil supervisor, who was based in Abu Dhabi, won the Dh7 million Big Ticket raffle for a ticket he purchased at the Abu Dhabi International Airport as he was leaving for good.
Mathew's winning ticket number 075171 was announced on Tuesday at the monthly raffle draw conducted at the airport.
Also read: Indian expat wins Dh7 million in Big Ticket Abu Dhabi raffle
He will share the jackpot with 18 other colleagues, including his brother Titto, from Abu Dhabi-based Skyline Contracting Company, where he had been working since the last six years.
"I bought the ticket at the Abu Dhabi airport just before boarding the flight for India on June 24. I was leaving the UAE for good to join my wife, who got a job in New Delhi. I still cannot believe I won," an ecstatic Mathew told Khaleej Times over the phone from Delhi.
He got married to Minu, a nurse, last year.
Mathew and his friends got the good news when they checked the Big Ticket website on July 3 morning.
"My brother's mobile number was with a company supervisor and he got the call first. When he informed me, I did not believe it till I checked online and saw his name," said Titto, who is also a civil supervisor at the same company.
Friends and colleagues had a tough time convincing Mathew. "We had to send the Big Ticket website's screengrabs through WhatsApp for him to believe it was not a prank," Titto added.
Mathew said he was sad to miss the celebration in his company accommodation as almost all his friends had won.
"This is the eighth or 10th time we had pooled in money to buy the raffle ticket. I am so happy because all my friends in the company - including the supervisor, office boy and a watchman - have won. All of these people are from middle or lower middle class backgrounds who struggle to save. Winning a raffle is a big thing for them."
For himself, Mathew said, the big dream is to own a house in Kerala. "That has been my long pending dream. Now it can be a reality with the raffle money," he said.
Nine other residents won Dh100,000 at the draw on Tuesday. The winners included five Indians, one Pakistani and a Kuwait resident.
Indian expat Eqlaqh Kamil Qureshi won the BMW series 02.
anjana@khaleejtimes.com
The paths of these two stars have intersected on several occasions due to their association with the luxury brand Bulgari
entertainment5 hours ago
The students' demands range from a ceasefire in Israel's war with Hamas to calls for universities to stop investing in Israeli enterprises
world5 hours ago
Despite Kohli's flowing form ahead of the T20 World Cup in June, pundits have raised concerns over his strike-rate
cricket5 hours ago
Saudi Arabia has begun to explore extracting lithium from sea water
business6 hours ago
Speaking after meeting Lebanese leaders, French foreign minister says there had been "a lot of progress" over the French proposals
mena6 hours ago
The three-shot winner from Japan says he is aiming to become a member of the PGA Tour in the future
sports6 hours ago
Big-hitting Nienaber falters at the finish to settle for secondwhile former Abu Dhabi resident David Horsey takes the third spot at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club
sports6 hours ago
The UAE is India's second-largest export destination after the US
economy7 hours ago