After 50 numerous attempts at striking gold at one of the most-anticipated raffle bonanzas in the UAE, a mother of two from India finally joined the ranks of high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs).
Nishita Radhakrishna Pillai, with ticket 058390, has just won Dh10 million at the Big Ticket in Abu Dhabi. Pillai, a medical practitioner, is the second person to bring home Dh10 million, the biggest amount granted to a draw participant since the inception of the raffle bonanza.
Pillai, who used to work as a paediatrician in the UAE for approximately two years, is currently in Houston, Texas with her husband and two children, to finish her fellowship in genetics.
Pillai and her family flew to the US last July for the scholarship, but distance did not prove to be a hindrance for participating in the UAE’s popular raffle draw.
Since six months ago, her husband has been buying tickets online under her name and so far, 50 coupons have been purchased.
“He would buy five tickets for every draw. My husband is such a big fun of the UAE. Well, we enjoyed our time working there and we do have plans to go back,” Pillai told Gulf News on the phone.
Pillai and her husband haven’t decided what to do with the money yet. “It’s such a big amount and besides we were awaken by the good news in the middle of the night and we can’t even think straight,” the elated wife said.
“It was my dad who shared the news with us since he’s the one who got the call from the organisers, and at first we thought it was a prank call. We had to check the Big Ticket website to confirm it,” she said.
When she saw her name, Pillai was positively overwhelmed. “It’s the best news ever. It’s the best feeling you could ever have,” she said.
Congrats! Ms. Nishitha Radhakrishna Pillai , from India, winning ticket 058390. She won AED 10Mil in The Big 10 Big Ticket Series178. pic.twitter.com/VCEiqsqIC6
— Big Ticket Abu Dhabi (@BigTicketAD) April 5, 2017
The millionaire promotion is the longest-running and the biggest raffle draw hosted at Abu Dhabi International Airport.
So far, the Big Ticket raffle has declared 178 millionaires, with the first few winners taking home Dh1 million.
Last December, another expatriate won the Dh10 million grand prize.
