Vatika and Curly Tales Dubai vowed to make this Ramadan unique and memorable and we did it! The Ramadan Campaign was a grand success and we are so happy and proud to be able to reach out to thousands of women out there, hear their stories and help them in a way that would better their lives. We picked six winners, two under each of our three core categories- mind, body and dreams.
It certainly was a tough call as each of the stories touched our hearts. However, with great difficulty, we had to zero down the winners. Here are the six winners of the Vatika Ramadan campaign.
Winners For Mind: Nada Abdullah, Lama Oden
Winners For Body: Areej BK, Rehab Satti
Winners For Dreams: Sarah Abdullah, Meral Niazi
The winners will receive personalized, one-on-one sessions with experts who will volunteer their time and skills for the contenders for free. Here’s a list of coaches who will provide free sessions to the winners:
After a big win like this, we wanted to capture the reaction of our winners and so we spoke to them to find out how they felt about winning, what the campaign meant to them and how it would change their lives. Here’s what they had to say:
Winners For Mind
1. Nada Abdullah
“Never did I imagine I would win”- starts off an excited Nada. A PhD student studying at the College of Medicine at Sultan Qaboos University, Nada feels a campaign like this is the need of the hour, as it pushed women to strive and achieve what they want in life, just the way she wishes to leave a mark in cancer research. “My journey has not been easy and this award will help me grow, organize life and my future ideas”, said Nada.
2. Lama Odeh
Lama Odeh, a medical student is subjected to many pressures, especially during exams and hospital training. She wanted to receive help, but the material burden of being a student prevented her. This was when she came across Vatika’s noble initiative.
“I am subjected to pressure during examinations and hospital training. Perhaps this pressure causes some symptoms of anxiety, and because I know the value of psychological help, I wanted to receive help”. Ambitious and passionate, Lama aims to complete medicine and spcialize in children’s mental health.
Nada and Lama will benefit from a 10-FREE sessions with therapist- Engy Michel. “Outer beauty attracts, but inner beauty captivates”, says Engy, who is all set to offer inspirational and guidance sessions which will help enhance their way of thinking and living.
Winners For Body
1. Areej BK
A life coach by profession, Areej says the campaign is a beautiful opportunity to support women in a way that will help them thrive and be their best version of themselves. She further added that the campaign shows women that support still exists and we just have to reach out. Ever since childhood, Areej was curious in human behaviors and psychology.
“Being a life coach has allowed me to strengthen my emotions and now the Vatika Campaign opportunity will help strengthen my physical body and learn more about it. Winning these benefits will give me the chance to learn about my own body, tools and knowledge that will help support my wellbeing and improve the quality of life”, Areej said.
2. Rehab Satti
This campaign gives a chance to those who are unable to accomplish their dreams and goals. I earnestly thank Vatika for giving me this opportunity, starts off Rehab.
“I honestly can’t believe that I won. I had gained a lot of weight during COVID, and that made me a different person. I lost my confidence and self-esteem. I suffered from disorder and started taking antidepressants. I let my weight affect who I am as a person; it affected my relationship with my friends and family. I tried to lose weight, I tried to look up, but I kept on failing. I needed help, but couldn’t afford it. And when I heard about this campaign, I thought I had to participate, I had to see my chances, and I told myself if I win I’ll give it all my best, and once I am on the right track, I’ll never fail myself again.”
Rehab now aims to improve herself and reach a point where she can stop taking pills. She aims to become the social and fun person that she used to be.
Entrepreneur and fitness expert Yasmine Hassan will provide 10 free workout sessions for the winners. Yasmine manages her local gym brand, SBTRCT. “Invest in yourself and allow yourself to reach your goals”, says Yasmine.
Winners For Dreams
1. Sarah Abdullah
The concept behind this campaign is so important in spreading goodness throughout this holy month, starts off Sarah. At a time when the world is battling a deadly pandemic, Sarah feels it is important to take care of ourselves and our bodies. “Once I came across this competition, I didn’t hesitate. I knew instantly this was a golden opportunity and had to enter. Winning this competition will be the first step in realizing my business and to finally begin working on my start-up.” Sarah plans to start researching and look for app developers to collaborate with and start her incredible journey.
2. Meral Niazi
As an actress Meral has played many characters in short and long films, but never got the right opportunity to play a character that will add value to her acting career. She further adds that acting, like any other profession is extremely challenging and Meral has also faced many rejections in the past, either for her looks or because she wan’t not famous enough.
However, Meral belives that winning Vatika’s benefit is the start of a great sign for a brighter future ahead of her. “I couldn’t believe myself I was jumping out of joy, because I have never won before any cash prize in my life, I felt this is the start of a great sign for a brighter future.” Speaking about the campaign, Meral believes it is a great gesture from Vatika to support those who are looking for a financial aid to kick off their dreams no matter how small or big.
Vatika’s benefit will reward and boost her team’s enthusiasm and give them the chance to purchase equipments that will improve the quality of their work. Besides a talk show titled ‘Swalif With Meral’, Meral is also working on another web series, and an OTT series.