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I told you before my family: Indian shop worker in Abu Dhabi dreams of new life after winning $1m million

thenationalnews.com · 13h · first reportShare

A shop worker in Abu Dhabi, who left Chennai 17 years ago to support his family, won $1 million (Dh3.67 million) in the Dubai Duty Free Millennium Millionaire draw on Wednesday. Saravanan Malairaj, 36, said the windfall would help him secure a better future for his twins, a boy and a girl aged four, and be able spend more time with them. Dubai Duty Free informed him of his win at 12.15pm but out of nervousness and disbelief, he had not informed his family in India before speaking to The National . “I have participated in raffle draws but never won anything. This comes as a big surprise,” Mr Malairaj told The National . The jackpot winner said life had been difficult in Chennai and that he sold family land to help pay for his sister's marriage before leaving India in 2009 in search of better opportunities in the UAE. “This money might now change the attitude of people around who have been ignoring us and unkind to my parents,” he said. He currently earns Dh8,000 a month working at the s