His childhood was mired in abuse, bullying, being abandoned by his family and ridiculed — all because he was a person with dwarfism. Atul Ingale, 31, now has a family of people around the Mumbai Metropolitan Region with the same condition. All of them have had difficult lives and are still struggling to make a living. 

Born in a tiny village in Bhusaval district, Ingale, who now goes by the name Atul Dabang, remembers classmates calling him names and even throwing stones at him, thinking him to be a freak. He dropped out of school, and then a circus company came touring to his village. The owners spoke to Ingale’s family and at 10, he was sent away to the harsh life of the touring company in exchange for a steady stream of income. The family did visit him sometimes, but he never saw his beloved grandmother again. He only heard about her passing a couple of months after her death.

Taj Mohammad Ansari, his wife Asiya and their daughter Alfiya. Pic/Shadab Khan; Other pics/Pic/By Special Arrangement