Monkey-man of Delhi

For other uses of the term, see Monkey Man (disambiguation).

Police artist's impression of the Monkey Man of New Delhi

The Monkey Man of New Delhi is a monster which was reported roaming Delhi in 2001.

Overview

In May 2001, reports began to circulate in the Indian capital New Delhi of a strange monkey-like creature that was appearing at night and attacking people.^[1] Eyewitness accounts were often inconsistent, but tended to describe the creature as about four feet (120 cm) tall,^[2] covered in thick black hair, with a metal helmet, metal claws, glowing red eyes and three buttons on its chest. Others have described it as a bandaged figure or as a helmeted thing. Theories on the nature of the Monkey Man ranged from an Avatar of the Hindu god Hanuman, to an Indian version of Bigfoot.^[3]

Many people reported being scratched, and two^[2] (by some reports, three) people even died when they leapt from the tops of buildings or fell down stairwells in a panic caused by what they thought was the attacker. At one point, exasperated police even issued artist's impression drawings in an attempt to catch the creature.

The entire incident has been described as an example of mass hysteria.

Specific incidents

• On 13 May 2001, 15 people suffered injuries ranging from bruises to bites and scratches.^[3]
• On 15 May 2001, a pregnant woman fell down some stairs fleeing after neighbors shouted that they had seen the Monkey Man.
• A 4-foot-tall (1.2 m) wandering Hindu sadhu was beaten up by an angry mob who mistook him for the Monkey Man.
• On 18 May 2001, a van driver was set upon and sustained multiple fractures in another case of mistaken identification as Monkey Man.
• Further sightings were reported in Kanpur in February 2002 and New Delhi in July 2002, the latter describing a monkey-like machine that sparkled red and blue lights.^[3]

In popular culture

The appearance of Monkey man in Old Delhi is the centre-point of the 2009 Bollywood Hindi film Delhi-6 directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. In the film, the creature, called in Hindi as "Kala Bandar (Black Monkey)" is used as an allegory to represent the evil that resides inside every man alongside God (virtue). The monkey man has never actually been caught on tape.

See also

• Magical thinking
• Superstition
• Spring-Heeled Jack
• Bukit Timah Monkey Man

References

1. ^ It's a man! It's a monkey! It's a...; by Onkar Singh in New Delhi; May 18, 2001; Rediff India. 'Monkey man' keeps Delhi awake again; May 18, 2001; Rediff India. . Also see [1], [2], [3]
2. ^ ^{a b} "Desi fables - The Times of India". Indiatimes. 26 June 2010. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Desi-fables/articleshow/6094485.cms. Retrieved 25 October 2010. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} Newton, Michael (2005). "Monkey Man (India)". Encyclopedia of Cryptozoology: A Global Guide. McFarland & Company, Inc.. pp. 306–307. ISBN 0-7864-2036-7. 

External links

• Sanal Edamaruku's first hand report on Monkey man
• To catch the phantom - Anita Joshua's article in The Hindu
• Time article about the Monkey man
• Strangemag story
• Flakmag story
• Verma SK, Srivastava DK. A study on mass hysteria (monkey men?) victims in East Delhi. Indian J Med Sci 2003;57:355-60