Dubai: Mahzooz, GCC’s weekly live draw that offers players a life-changing opportunity to win millions of dirhams every week, has so far given away over Dh56 million of cash prize money since November 2020 when it was launched.
In an exclusive interview with Gulf News, Farid Samji, CEO of EWINGS, which is the managing operator of Mahzooz draws, said there have been 17 millionaires from the UAE, UK, Lebanon, India, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, China and Bangladesh so far. Over 125,000 winners have been the recipients of the prize monies. The nationalities have been a mix with over 197 participating every week for the draw. “The participants are not just from the UAE but from around the world. So far, we have registered participants from 148 countries,” he added.
What is Mahzooz?
“It is an Arabic word for luck, fortune. And so it was the chosen name for the weekly draw that we conduct that pretty much changes people’s lives over night.”
Samji added: “Everybody who boards their first flight to UAE comes here with a dream. Many things weigh on their minds, one of them is to make money. The other is about having a good quality life. The UAE is a land of opportunities. And so it was the right thing to do, to launch the Mahzooz draw.”
Samji said the draw is based out of a profit entity. “But we have a social conscience. The purpose of the draw is to help people realise their dreams and thereby, we feel we are doing something good for the society,” said Samji, adding that EWINGs is backed by 10 investors belonging to prominent families.
Spreading the message of hope
Samji said: “The weekly draw gives hope to people. And that is why it is a huge success now.”
He recalled that there was a lot of effort that went into creating the concept. “I was involved in every step of the way right from the concept, hiring people, signing contracts, finalising design, etc.”
So, what does it take to win?
Samji replied: “All it takes is to purchase a water bottle for Dh35. By virtue of purchasing the water bottle, you enter into a draw. And that draw can earn you millions.”
How to play?
- First create an account for yourself on the website. If you have one already then just log in with your ID and password.
- Click ‘play’ on the top menu and select buy now.
- Select the number of water bottles you want to donate and click add to cart. Each bottle makes you eligible for one line in the draw.
- Pick six numbers in line 1. You can play multiple lines at a time and even submit numbers for future draws.
- Add the lines to your cart.
- Click ‘check out’ to either pay using your credit balance or using your payment card.
- A confirmation will be sent to you via email or SMS.
- Winners will get a message from Mahzooz and their winnings will be added to their winnings balance.
Samji said: “Through the week one can enter the draw and choose six numbers out of 49. The prize structure is very simple. If you match all six numbers, there’s the Dh50 million grand prize. If you match five out of six, you win Dh1 million. You might be the sole winner for that day or there maybe four to five winners. It depends on what numbers panned out.”
What numbers are people picking?
The six numbers are chosen by people and they mostly pick birth dates. “If you want to be a sole winner pick a number from 32 to 49. It is not going to increase your chances of winning as the machine picks random numbers. But chances are if you do win, then you probably win it without sharing it with a lot of people.”
The pay out?
“It is done in 15 days. Winners get their money in full within two weeks.”
Who are the participants?
By and large, Indians are buying Mahzooz tickets, said Samji. “That’s also because one in four people living in the UAE are Indians. A mix of nationalities are purchasing the tickets including Pakistanis, Nepalis, South Africans and others. But predominantly Indians and Filipinos are buying the tickets,” he added.
More about Mahzooz
• Mahzooz is now available in five languages: English Arabic, Urdu, Hindi, and Malayalam
• Mahzooz mobile app is available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store
• Customers can participate in Mahzooz using cash through over 380 Kiosks across the UAE
• The weekly live show take place every Saturday at 9pm UAE time and is live-streamed on its website, and Facebook and YouTube accounts.
• Customers can participate from anywhere in the world and win
• Customers can transfer their winnings to their countries
• It claims it is the only draw to disburse the winning amount within 15 days from the time a winner has claimed their winnings
