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Dubai: Car wash worker earning Dh1,300 salary wins Dh10 million in Mahzooz draw

The Asian expat, whose younger brother suffers from a brain tumour, plans to use his winnings to help pay for medical expenses

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by

Nasreen Abdulla

Published: Wed 21 Sep 2022, 12:30 PM

Last updated: Wed 21 Sep 2022, 6:13 PM

A Nepalese car washer who earns Dh1300 per month has become the latest winner of Dh10 million through the Mahzooz draw. The elated 31-year-old Bharat BK said his first priority with the winnings is to make sure his family is settled.

Arriving in Dubai three years ago, Bharat had just one goal - to make enough money to help him continue the treatment of his 25-year-old younger brother, who suffers from a brain tumour. His father works as a driver in India, and the father-son duo have been pitching in for the medical expenses.

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"My brother has been under treatment in India at New Delhi," he said. "During a surgery, he became paralyzed and lost his hearing. This money will help me get him better care."

Currently, the father of two does not have a bank account.

"We are in the process of helping him open a bank account so that we can transfer the money," said Farid Samji, CEO of EWINGS, operator of Mahzooz.

Bharat also wants to use the money to secure the future of his five-year-old son and three-year-old daughter.

Serial Mahzooz player

Scheduled to travel back to Nepal on September 27 for the first time since he came to Dubai, his winning purchase was a last-minute decision for Bharat.

"It was 1am and I thought to myself that I would play one last time before going," he said. He purchased this winning entry with two friends.

Hailing from the village of Gulmi, which is located a 10-hour drive away from the Nepalese capital of Kathmandu, Bharat worked in Saudi Arabia before coming to Dubai. For the last 2-and-a-half years, he has been a regular player on Mahzooz.

"When I first came to Dubai, I had a feeling in my heart that before I return to Nepal, I will win something," he said. This conviction is what compelled him to try out the weekly draw.

He has bought tickets along with his friends and individually multiple times.

"My cousin who lives in Abu Dhabi told me about it," he said. "I tried several other draws, but I found Mahzooz the most credible, so I stopped buying everything else and continued only with this."

Bharat won the life-changing amount after matching five out of the five winning numbers, which were 16, 27, 31, 37, 42. He said that he always picked 16 and 27 in his combinations as those numbers were special to him.

"27th is my birth date, and 16th is the date I got married," he said.

His friends and colleagues are very excited for him.

"My managers are now asking me how to play Mahzooz," he said. "They are all very happy for me."

Winning moment

After finishing his shift at 9pm, Bharat returned to his accommodation on Saturday night. On checking his phone, he saw that two of his numbers had matched.

"I watched the rest of the draw live," he said. "My friends were with me. And as each number was matched, they got excited. When the final number matched, they erupted in cheers and screams of happiness. I could not sleep that night."

"The next day, when the lady from Mahzooz called, I was in the middle of washing a car. I asked her if I could finish my work and call her back."

He has rescheduled his trip back to Nepal for the time being.

"Now, I will go after all the formalities are completed," he said. "I haven't told my family how much I have won. I just told them that I won this draw. I am waiting to go back home and surprise them in person."

Despite his winnings, Bharat intends to come back to Dubai and work.

"Dubai is the city that has given me a lot in my life," he said. "I want to come back and work here. I also want to continue playing Mahzooz."

Bharat is the first expat from Nepal to ever win Mahzooz's top prize and is one of the lowest earners to win in the draw's history.

"It still hasn't sunken into him that he has won such a big prize," said Farid Samji. "We are absolutely delighted that we are able to change someone's life like this."

With this draw, Mahzooz has given away more than Dh280,000,000 in prize money, and will be celebrating its 28th millionaire, six of whom were crowned this summer, between June and September.

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Nasreen Abdulla

Published: Wed 21 Sep 2022, 12:30 PM

Last updated: Wed 21 Sep 2022, 6:13 PM

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