Indian Friends Living in Ajman Share Life-Changing $1 Million Dubai Duty Free Win

An Indian citizen living in Ajman has won $1 million in the Dubai Duty Free draw after purchasing a ticket online with a group of friends. Jijo Pulikkathodi was stunned when the call came in at 11.30am on Wednesday, a disbelief shared by the 17 friends he splits the ticket with.

Rather than celebrating immediately, the group first double-checked with The National to confirm that ticket number 4891 matched the winning number announced by Dubai Duty Free. Too stunned to speak, Mr Pulikkathodi passed the phone to his friend and co-winner, Mohammed Anas. “This was our second ticket with Dubai Duty Free, and it was worth every penny and more,” Mr Anas told The National.

The winners all reside together in shared accommodation in Ajman, with most originating from Kerala. Mr Pulikkathodi works at a photo studio, Mr Anas serves as a pharmacy assistant, and others are employed as drivers, a sales manager, a store supervisor, an electrician, and a courier delivery person. Having pooled their money for tickets over three or four months, their persistence finally paid off. “This win will definitely help all of us,” Mr Anas noted.

For 41-year-old Mr Pulikkathodi, who has lived in the UAE for four years and earns Dh1,800 a month, the win is transformative. While the news is still sinking in, he contemplates eventually opening his own photo studio. Back home, his wife and his daughters, aged 18 and four, were overjoyed by the news. With friends scattered across various workplaces when the call arrived, a proper celebration is planned for the evening when the group reunites.

Mr Pulikkathodi marks the 283rd Indian national to claim a $1 million prize through Dubai Duty Free's Millennium Millionaire promotion since its inception in 1999, keeping Indian nationals as the program's leading ticket buyers.

Additional recent winners include Rohan Prakash Fernandes, an Indian national based in Dubai who received a ceremonial cheque for Series 554. Yogesh Dhanak, a 53-year-old Indian from Sharjah, won a Range Rover SE P360 in the Finest Surprise Series 1962 after participating for 15 years. Meanwhile, Eser Erol, a 35-year-old Turkish national in Dubai, won a BMW F 900 GS motorbike, and Melwin Pontes, an Indian living in Dubai, secured an Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 motorbike in his second win with the draw.