The decision to buy a Dh15 lottery ticket made Ajay Ogula a millionaire.
The Indian resident is experiencing his very own Christmas miracle as the first person to win the Emirates Draw mega-millionaire jackpot.
Revealed as the lucky winner on Friday, Mr Ogula still seemed in shock at his good fortune.
When he received the email notification, he thought he had won a much smaller prize until he grasped what had happened. “I just stood there standing. I had no words,” Mr Ogula, 31, told The National.
“Was this real? But the following day Emirates Draw rang me to confirm and I realised what happened. I was in shock and feeling so nervous. Dh15 million? What will I do with so much?”
From humble beginnings to great fortune
Mr Ogula left his native Hyderabad 10 years ago in a search of a better life. His father had passed away and he needed to support his mother and two siblings.
“We were very poor,” he said of his life in India. “We didn’t have a house and were struggling very much.”
He worked his way through the Gulf before arriving in the UAE in 2019 and landed in Dubai as a driver for a jewellery company. He sent money back every month to support his family, working long shifts to make it possible.
But what transpired over the past few weeks has hardly seemed real and his mother, brother and sister back in India are also in shock. It was the first time he entered the lottery and simply picked random numbers for the December 16 draw.
“They didn’t believe the news,” he said. “I am telling them daily this is real.”
Mr Ogula first plans to bring his family to the UAE for a holiday after he arranges passports and flights.
“I also want to buy a house for my mother and sister. They will come here and we will discuss what to do.”
Sharing success with others
He is also taking a small break from his job but has no other plans for now bar helping others. His generosity runs deep and he has previously helped less-fortunate people in his village and now plans to do even more to help those who need it most.
I am going to help people, he said.
People have another opportunity to emulate his good fortune in the Dh15 million draw tonight when Mr Ogula will press the button to select the numbers.
Emirates Draw holds two events every week. A simple draw is held every Friday at 9pm with the Dh15 million grand prize on offer. Every Sunday, meanwhile, is the main event and participants can win prizes from Dh10,000 to Dh77,000. There is also a major jackpot of Dh100 million, which has been increased to Dh160 million just for December 25.
Winners have an option to take their prize money in instalments or a lump sum.
"Emirates Draw is not just about numbers and winners ― it is about making a difference in people’s lives and has been the goal from day one and will remain at the heart of all we do," said Mohammad Alawadhi, managing partner at Emirates Draw.
"Our entire team is ecstatic for Ajay Ogula, and we are confident that this win will positively change his life and all the people around him."
People can take part in the draws by buying a Dh50 pencil that will support the planting of corals. After registering online, participants can select their seven-digit number or have the system choose a number randomly.
The games are streamed across Emirates Draw’s digital platforms, YouTube, Facebook, and website.
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The five pillars of Islam
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre, four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: seven-speed dual clutch automatic
Power: 169bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh54,500
On sale: now
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
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- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
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- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
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Paris Can Wait
Dir: Eleanor Coppola
Starring: Alec Baldwin, Diane Lane, Arnaud Viard
Two stars
RESULTS
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
No_One Ever Really Dies
N*E*R*D
(I Am Other/Columbia)
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The biog
Name: Abeer Al Bah
Born: 1972
Husband: Emirati lawyer Salem Bin Sahoo, since 1992
Children: Soud, born 1993, lawyer; Obaid, born 1994, deceased; four other boys and one girl, three months old
Education: BA in Elementary Education, worked for five years in a Dubai school
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
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