Dubai: A Telangana farmer, who was down on his luck after having been rejected by employers in Dubai, won big in the Big Ticket Raffle, taking home winnings to the tune of Dh 15 million. What’s even more amazing is the fact that he bought the raffle tickets with the money he had borrowed from his wife.
Vilas Rikkala, a resident of the Jakranpalli village in the Nizamabad district of Telangana, had gone to Dubai in the hopes of getting a good job. Although he and his wife work farm jobs here in India, he had previously lived in Dubai and worked as a driver. The couple has two daughters.
He left Dubai about 45 days ago when he was rejected by employers. He has been buying raffle tickets in the UAE for the past two years and so, he borrowed Rs 20,000 from his wife and gave it to his friend Ravi, who works in Abu Dhabi, instructing him to the raffle tickets in his name.
As luck would have it, Vilas struck gold and won a total of Dh 15 million or USD 4.08 million in the raffle.
Ecstatic with his win, he said, “My wife, Padma, is the reason for the celebration.
