Indian ‘elephant man’ is often compared to a Hindu god, but his only prayer is for a miracle surgery to fix his ‘trunk’

A so-called “elephant man” in India who has drawn comparisons to the Hindu god Ganesh — the lord of obstacles — would rather live a normal life than be worshiped by his countrymen, he said in a new interview on Monday.

Kanai Das, the “elephant man,” has neurofibromatosis, a condition that gives his face large, hanging facial deformities, similar to Ganesh’s trunk.

“I was nine-years-old when small lumps started growing on my face,” he said in a new interview posted to YouTube on Monday. “Over time they started growing and covered my face. “

Now 42, Das can only see out of his left eye and has to take multiple medicines to ease the itching and irritation on his face.

 

“People think I am God because I have a trunk like him. But I was not like this always,” he said, according to The Mirror.

“I have fond memories of seeing from both the eyes but over the years, my right eye has disappeared. I could see it in the mirror some years ago but now I cannot find it in all the pile of flesh. I do not even remember how I used to look before.”

When he is not handling the itching and irritation, Das is struggling to drink and eat normally — the “trunk” makes those activities difficult as well.

 

Das spends his days begging commuters in Baruipur, India for money in hopes that he will one day be able to afford a life-changing surgery to remove the tumors.

During the festival season he does especially well, as groups see the resemblance to Ganesh.

“I do not want to beg but I have no other way to earn money and look after my mother,” he said.

Das is looked after by his adopted mother, 73-year-old shopkeeper Bharati Roy —his birth mother abandoned him.

“He lives with me and I take care of him,” Roy said. “I was in the shop when I saw a young boy, wretched and sifting through the dustbin for food. His nose was bulging and his right eye was sagging. I was so moved by his condition that I could not stop myself from bringing him home.”

Roy and her late husband attempted to get Das proper medical treatment but were continuously told his condition is irreversible.

“Everyone loves him and seeks his blessings. But we need the blessings. He needs it more as he lives a very painful life,” Roy said.

Despite his condition and daily struggles, Das is hopeful that he will one day live a normal life again.

“Though doctors have told me there is no cure, I still hope for a miracle. I want to be a healthy person and lead a normal life,” a wishful Kanai.