The group, which included 20 Indian expats in Dubai took home the Dh25 million grand prize at the Big Ticket raffle draw held in Abu Dhabi on Thursday. Originating from the southern part of the Indian State of Kerala the majority from the group had resided in the emirate for over 10 years.

They make a monthly income of between Dh2,500 to Dh3,000, as they are employed in the restaurant industry. In addition, by pooling their funds they’ve bought tickets on a regular basis for the past four years.

“We weren’t watching the live broadcast. We watched the live broadcast hoping that we’d win, but we didn’t have any luck. Sometimes, some of the numbers that we had on the tickets could coincide with the winning ticket. We’ve been close, but have never actually got anything. We stopped following our live draws and decided to verify who won in the future via social media or news reports” Antony said.