For most teenagers, standing out can be daunting, but for 18-year-old Lalit Patidar from Madhya Pradesh, it became his claim to fame. Born with hypertrichosis, an extremely rare condition often referred to as “werewolf syndrome”, Lalit has now secured a Guinness World Record for having the hairiest male face. The teenager has 201.72 facial hairs per square centimetre. For context, the condition he suffers with is so rare that there are just about 50 recorded cases of it since the Middle Ages.
With over 95% of his face covered in hair, Lalit’s journey has been anything but ordinary. As a child, his appearance startled classmates, but once they got to know him, they quickly realised he was no different from them. “They were scared of me, but when they started talking to me, they realised I was just like them. It was only my appearance that was different,” he told Guinness World Records.
Instead of letting societal perceptions weigh him down, Lalit embraced his uniqueness. He runs a YouTube channel, offering a candid look into his daily life and proving that he is much more than his condition. Though he has a strong support system in his family and friends, not everyone has been kind. Strangers have suggested he shave, but Lalit remains unapologetically himself, “I like how I am, and I don’t want to change my look.”
His record-setting moment came in Italy, where a trichologist officially measured his facial hair on the show Lo Show dei Record. Overjoyed, Lalit said, “I am speechless. I don’t know what to say because I am very happy to get this recognition.”