15 Biggest Lottery Winners in India

The past decade was a lucky time for Indian players, as many Indian players who play the local and international lottery hit the jackpot. Some of them have become part of the biggest lottery winners in India and have become crorepatis and millionaires by taking home millions of dollars from lottery winnings. These lotteries have allowed winners to live a more comfortable life and even donate to charity.

Here are the top 15 biggest lottery winners in India. We know that their stories will inspire you to try your luck at the lottery. Let’s get started.

Ushakiran Patel

Ushakiran Patel is the lucky $1 million winner of the US Powerball international lottery. She is a 62-year-old woman who won the second prize in the lottery by matching five numbers in the draw in March 2018. Her winning numbers were 06, 13, 19, 36, and 51.

She was not a regular player and couldn’t be bothered to play frequently. An essential part of her story is that she didn’t prepare or make any calculations or predictions to choose her numbers. Instead, she employed the quick pick option in the Powerball lottery to randomly generate her selection. She got lucky and won a million dollars.

After deduction of taxes, she went home with $633,040. She claimed she didn’t know what to do with the money. But one thing is for sure, her quality of life as an Indian retiree in the US will improve.

Credit: New York lottery

Sandeep ‘Sunny’ Singh

Sandeep Singh (a.k.a. Sunny) is one of the most famous names on the list of the biggest lottery winners in India. This is because he won $30.5 million in the Mega Millions lottery. His winning makes him the youngest and richest lottery international lottery champion in India. He has an exciting story too.

Sunny has always believed that he will win the lottery one day. His faith, belief in himself, and passion for gambling paid off when he played the Mega Millions Lotto in October 2021. He won the jackpot prize of $61 million, which he shared with another lottery winner. The intriguing part of this story is that his girlfriend dumped him some days before his big win. He was working two jobs to support the family.

He played the US Powerball and Mega Millions for a year before he got lucky. After that, he became a millionaire. He took home a one-time payment of $23 million after-tax deduction. He planned to use the money to settle the loan on his mother’s house, earn a bachelor’s degree in business, and donate a portion to charity.

Credit: Mega Millions

Nandlall Mangal

Some people like to keep trying and never give up. This is the story of Nandlall Mangal, a regular lottery player in India. He won a massive $245.6 million in the US Powerball in 2018. He played a $6 lotto ticket and chose 5, 43, 56, 62, and 68, as well as a Powerball number of 24. These numbers matched the draw and became a millionaire.

To tell the truth, Nandlall Mangal is not actually an Indian. He is a Caribbean-born West Indian national of West Indian descent. Nandlall is also an Indian American from Staten Island in New York. He likes to play the lottery when the jackpot exceeds $100 million. He got lucky, and he won. Before his win, he worked as a construction worker in Guyana.

He claimed he didn’t know what to do with his winnings. He loves working, so he will continue working. However, he will travel to Hawaii because he has always wanted to do that. He got a lump sum of $99,321,975 after tax deduction, which he put in a ‘Sea and Sand’ trust.

Credits: New York Lottery

Nirmal Dhamodarasamy

Nirmal Dhamodarasamy was a 23-year-old Indian student at the University of Illinois at Chicago when he won $1 million in the US Powerball. He started playing US Powerball when he subscribed to several online lottery sites. Like other lottery winners, he made his selection through quick pick and chose 04, 13, 31, 36, 53, and a Powerball number of 08. He got lucky and matched five numbers except for the Powerball.

The best part about this story is that this was his first attempt at the US Powerball. Lady Luck happened, and he won a million dollars. He claimed that the $1.5 billion jackpot attracted him to the game. When asked what he planned to use the money for, he said he wanted to buy plane tickets to fly his entire family from India to Chicago so they could join his graduation celebration.

Credits: Illinois Lottery

C.J

C.J is an Indian man who stayed anonymous when he won the Austria Lottery in November 2018. He decided to remain anonymous to conceal his identity and keep a low profile. He won the second prize in the Austria Lottery draw, a whooping sum of  €32,161 when he matched six numbers from the draw. His winning numbers were 20, 25, 29, 32, 37, 43, and 44. All his selections matched except for 43. He would have won the jackpot prize if he had picked 25 instead of 25.

He has been a long-time lottery player and has been buying lottery tickets since 2017 through theLotter – one of the lottery sites we recommend for lottery players. CJ loves the lottery because it allows him to dream and fantasize about winning a large amount.

CJ aims to use his winnings to live a more comfortable life and improve his living status.

Balraj Awasthi

Balraj Awasthi became an international multimillionaire when he won $12 million at the Lotto 6/49. His winnings transformed his life and gave him the funds he needed to pursue his dreams. Before his grand win, he worked as a chef in Toronto, Canada. He plans to establish a private business and travel worldwide, with his favorite locations being Europe and Australia.

Credits: Ontario Lottery Gaming Corporation

Pragnesh Peter Saija

Another Indian in Canada won $7 million just four days after Balraj Awasthi took home $12.8 million. This is the story of Pragnesh Peter Saija. He purchased a physical ticket from a Canadian retailer and won the Daily Grand Lottery. 

He planned to use his winnings to buy his dream family house with many bedrooms, a swimming pool, and a home theatre. He also allocated a portion of his winnings to care for his children for the rest of their lives and fund any education and academic degree they wish to pursue.

Credits: Ontario Lottery Gaming Commission

Tahir Ali

Tahir Ali is another Indian in Canada who hit big with an international lottery. He is a seven-year resident of Mississauga who won a whooping sum of $2 million in the Ontario 49 lottery in 2014. He was informed about the lottery on the radio and was attracted to the massive jackpot. When he learned he had won $2 million, he wept tears of joy.

Tahir planned to use his winnings to fund his children’s education and live a better life. He said playing the lottery was the best decision he has made in his life.

Credits: Ontario Lottery Gaming Commission

Lingaraju D

The story of Lingaraju D is inspiring. He was a retired Karnataka local government health inspector who became richer overnight through the Mega Millions lottery. He played the lottery and won $520,000, estimated at 3.8 crores. He couldn’t hold back his emotions when he confirmed the lottery results and realized he was a winner. He stays in Bengaluru.

Suppose you are a regular player of online lotteries. In that case, you might want to copy the lottery strategy of Lingaraju D. He said he always plays all the lotteries available on the Lottofy. By doing this, he can maximize his chances of winning. It worked for him, and he became a lucky winner of $520,000 in June 2020. He matched four numbers out of five and became the second prize winner. He would have won $351 million if he accurately predicted the whole selection.

An exciting part of this story is how he made his selection; he chose his birthday date (23), his lucky number (5), the draw date (9), his zodiac sign (1), and 10 as it was the 10th morning in India. The complete selection is 1, 5, 9, 10, 22, and 23. He matched all except for 23. When asked how he planned to spend the money, he said he would buy a new home and pay off the loans on his three daughters’ homes. He also wants to help his family members who need financial support.

Partho Mondal

2020 was a big year for LottoLand, one of the top lotteries in the world. It was the year they got their first Lakhpati (or Indian millionaire). This person was Partho Mondal. Partho Mondal was a customer care representative at an international company when he hit the lottery and won 53 lakh from the Malamaal Daily. He played and won through LottoLand.

LottoLand organizes a special lottery for Indian players, called the Malamaal Daily, which costs ₹40 to enter. Partho stated that he chose this lottery because it was affordable. He selected five numbers at random and entered them into the draw. His winning numbers were 03, 05, 14, 30, and 31. This decision turned out to be the best thing he had done in a long time.

Partho had a word of advice for people considering joining LottoLand. He urged them to sign up as they might get lucky and win life-changing sums. He planned to use his winnings to settle his debts and provide financial support to his family and friends.

Credits: Lottoland 

Prasanth Parasuraman

Keep playing till you win. Prasanth Parasuraman was a habitual player of the Lotto 649. He played the lottery weekly, and Lady Luck smiled at him in January 2017. He won $286,791. Initially, he thought he won $286 and was excited about it, but after further examination, he found out it was actually $286,791. He couldn’t believe his luck when the Ontario Lottery Gaming Corporation confirmed his winnings.

When he told his parents, his parents were thrilled. His mother wept tears of joy and his father immediately started vacation trips to India. How he spent the money remains unknown, but Prasanth stated that he intended to use some of the money to travel to Mexico or Jamaica. He also wants to put a down payment on his house and pursue his dream of establishing his own food business.

Credits: Ontario Lottery Gaming Corporation

Mr. Das

Sometimes, even unforeseen circumstances can pave the way to success. Mr. Das Gaur, a rickshaw driver, was supposed to go on a picnic with his union members, but the rain started, and they had to cancel their plan. On his way home, he met a lottery seller who persuaded him to buy the ticket. Mr. Das didn’t want to buy it because he had only Rs 70. The lottery seller won him over, and he purchased the ticket for Rs 30.

He checked the lottery results at a lottery ticket shop and was delighted to hear that he had won the jackpot prize of Rs 50 Lakh. He kept the information secret for safety until he submitted the ticket the following Monday.

He plans to build a bigger house with the winnings and contribute the rest towards his children’s education.

Porunnan Rajan - New Year Winner

As the famous saying goes, “the right man, in the right place, at the right time, can steal millions.” This happened to Porunna Rajan, a Kurichiya community member and a resident of Malur grama panchayat in Kannur.

Porunnan Rajan played the lottery when he was in dire financial need. He took a loan to finance the marriage of his daughter and other expenses. Interestingly, Porunnan played the lottery during his second visit to the bank for a second loan. He got lucky, and he won the jackpot prize of the Christmas-New Year Bumper lottery, a whopping sum of ₹12 crores.

After tax deductions and agency commission, he received ₹7.2 crores. Porrunnan Rajan used his winnings to pay his debts of  ₹7 Lakhs and build a new house.

Akshit Kumar Jain

Akshit Kumar Jain is the youngest crorepati of the Playwin Thunderball Lotto. He became the 96th winner of the jackpot when he matched the winning numbers 08, 18, 19, 27, 41, and 1. This won him the jackpot prize of Rs 2.83 crores on the 3rd of January 2017. Jain felt very proud of winning the lottery, stating that the cash prize would transform his life.

His winning allowed him to join over 90 crorepatis and 5000 Lakhpatis, who have won large amounts from Playwin in their 15 years of operation.

The 6-man Syndicate

This is a real-life story of six friends who work together in a Jewelry shop. They pooled resources together and bought lottery tickets together. Their strategy worked, hitting the jackpot of ₹12 crores in 2019. Considering that they each contributed ₹600 to purchase tickets, they got a good return on their investment.

These friends rank among the biggest lottery winners in India. However, they choose to keep working in the Jewelry shop. While the details of how they spent their winnings remain unknown, we are sure they spent it well.

Indian Lottery Winners by Lotteries

How to Be the Next Lottery Winner in India

The odds of becoming the next lottery winner in India are high, but you can still win. The biggest lottery winners in India are proof that it is possible to scale through the high odds and win a life-changing jackpot. Regardless of whether you are playing at a government lottery in India or playing online at foreign lottery websites, you have a chance to become a lottery winner

You can also become a crorepati through the Indian lottery. Here is a list of the things you can do to win the lottery.

Biggest Lottery Winners in India FAQ

Has Anyone Won the Lottery in India?
Yes, many people have won the lottery in India. Ushakiran Patel, Sandeep ‘Sunny’ Singh, Nandlall Mangal, Nirmal Dharmodarasamy, and Balraj Awasthi are famous winners who have won millions from the lottery in India.

Who Won Highest Lottery in India?
Nandlall Mangal won the highest lottery in India. To date, he remains the highest lottery winner with a jackpot prize of $245.6 million, which he won from the US Powerball lottery in 2018. This sum changed his life and transformed him into a millionaire.

Is It Possible to Win an Indian Lottery?
Yes, it is possible to win an Indian lottery. Many people have won massive amounts from the Indian lottery, and many people will still win life-changing jackpots in the Indian lottery. You, too, can become an Indian lottery winner by playing the lottery on online sites.

Who Won LottoLand Lottery in India?
Partho Mondal won the Malamaal Daily, which he played through the LottoLand lottery in India. He paid ₹40 to enter the draw, and he was lucky. He won Rs 53 Lakhs from the lottery

Which Is the Best Lottery in India?
The best lotteries in India are Powerball, Mega Millions, Malamaal Daily, Playwin, and Jeeto Lotto. You can play these games on the best online lottery sites in India, such as theLotter, LottoGo, and Lottofy.

Has Any Indian Won in LottoLand Asia?
Yes, Indians have won in LottoLand Asia. Partho Mondal is a notable example. He matched five numbers in the draw and won the Jackpot prize of Rs 53 Lakhs. Just recently, another Indian, Shaji Matthew won 3.3 crores in the Atlantis Slot game at LottoLand Asia.