Hailing from Tamil Nadu, Selvam started working in Singapore in 2007 to support his wife and three children. In addition, he is also responsible for the wives and children of his two older brothers who have since died.
Having been here for over 10 years, Selvam thinks that “Singapore is a nice country”. Throughout the interview, he continued to express gratitude towards his employers for changing his life.
When asked why they held the competition, Pollisum Engineering’s executive director Chris Ang said: “Our company has (been performing) quite well for the past few years. As such, we wanted to motivate and incentivise our staff. We wanted to change lives with the money [set aside for the dinner and dance event]. That’s why we (took inspiration) from Squid Game.”
The company ended up awarding each participant in their competition at least S$188. They also revealed that they plan to bring all their workers on an overseas trip should they hit their targets this year.
For now, Selvam Arumugam is a prime example of how hard work and a bit of luck can change one’s life for the better.