- Saidalavi Kariodan Varichalil won 100,000 Dirhams in the Big Ticket raffle in UAE
- He has lived in UAE for 17 years and works as a watchman at a local school
- Saidalavi and friends pooled money monthly for four years to buy raffle tickets
Life of a 44-year-old Indian man working in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) changed overnight after a major raffle win, Gulf News reported. Saidalavi Kariodan Varichalil, who hails from Kerala, won a jackpot of 100,000 Dirhams (approximately Rs 26 lakh) in the popular Big Ticket draw. Saidalavi has lived in the UAE for 17 years and currently works as a watchman at a local school. He was first introduced to the Big Ticket raffle by his friends. For the past four years, he regularly pooled money with a group of friends every month to purchase tickets together, hoping to win the big prize.
That dream turned into reality during Series 289 of the draw, where Saidalavi's group ticket was drawn as one of the winning entries. What makes the win even sweeter and more exciting is that the actual lucky ticket had been selected randomly by his friend, Anub.
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Saidalavi was one of five participants, including two from Akhil Chandran RP and Sarath Sasidharan from Kerala, and Arifuzzaman Shuvo and Sabuj Md Delowar Munshi from Bangladesh. All shared the overall pool of 500,000 Dirhams in that draw, with each winner taking home an equal portion of 100,000 Dirhams.
When asked about his plans for the windfall, Saidalavi shared that he intends to send his share of the money back home to support his family in India.
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Despite the life-changing prize, his belief in luck remains strong; he has already chipped in for another ticket for the next upcoming raffle.
Offering words of encouragement to other hopeful participants, Saidalavi advised them never to lose faith: "Keep hoping! Your day will come."
