Is Chandra Bahadur - 22 inches- world's smallest man?!!

February 26, 2012 02:02
Is Chandra Bahadur - 22 inches- world's smallest man?!!

72-year-old Chandra Bahadur Dangi only recently learned he might be the world's shortest man. Dangi says he's only 22 inches (56 centimeters) tall - about the size of a toddler - and he's hoping to claim the title. Guinness World Records said in an email Wednesday that its officials would arrive in Nepal's capital Sunday to measure Dangi.

He has never worked outside the home or seen a doctor, and until Wednesday, he had never left his remote mountain village in western Nepal. At just 22 inches tall, shorter than the length of a broadsheet newspaper, Chandra Bahadur Dangi will tomorrow be officially named the world's smallest man by Guinness World Records.

Dangi, who has never been married, lives with his eldest brother and his family in Rhimkholi village, about 250 miles (400 kilometers) west of Katmandu. Because of his height, he has never worked outside the house, doing only household chores. His five brothers are of average size.

Dangi eats mainly rice and vegetables, and occasionally meat, but in small portions. Since the village is so remote, it was only recently that Dangi gained notice. A forest contractor cutting timber in the village met him and informed local media after Dangi's height was measured.

Dangi's nephew, Dolak Dangi, said that before the contractor's visit, the family did not know his uncle's exact height, and that he was shorter than the world's shortest man.

Dangi, 72, left his home in a isolated Nepalese village to fly to the capital, Kathmandu, to be measured by Guinness World Records officials tomorrow.

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Guinness World Records said in an email Wednesday that the officials would arrive in Nepal’s capital, Katmandu, on Sunday to measure Dangi.  If his measurements are correct, he will beat the current record holder for the world's shortest man, Filipino Junrey Balawing, 18, who is 23.5 inches tall.

He claimed the title last year from Khagendra Thapa Magar, 18, whose height is 26 inches tall.

Dangi, who wears a traditional hat and tailor-made clothing, was today looking forward to receiving the accolade after remaining out of the media spotlight all his life.

He said: 'I feel good that I will be declared the world's shortest man.'

Dangi claims he has never taken any kind of medication or been examined by a doctor.

He admits he suffers the odd cold, but revealed he has a home remedy, saying: 'At such times I drink hot water and have tumeric power dissolved in water. The fever lasts for two to three days.

'I haven't been ill probably because my body is good.'

Dangi, the seventh sibling of a family of six brothers and two sisters, does not remember his father and his mother, who died when he was 16-years-old. His immediate older brother and family have looked after him.

Three of his five brothers were less than four feet tall, while his two sisters and two brothers are of average height.

Dangi only left his village, Reemkholi in Dang district, about 217 miles from Kathmandu, for the first time five years ago and this is his first visit to the Himalayan capital.

Asked why he did not stake a claim earlier to be declared the shortest man, he said his family was unaware of such a record, because they are uneducated.

Dangi spends his days making placemats and head straps for villagers to carry heavy loads on their backs.

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His nephew, Dolak Dangi, said: 'He would also look after the buffalos and cows.

'Although he could not chase them or tie them - he would call us if they strayed.'

Dangi hopes to use his new found fame to travel, admitting: 'I think things will be better now. I hope that I will be famous all over the world.

'I want to visit foreign countries and meet people from around the world.'

Aside from a Guinness certificate, the crown of world’s shortest man does not come with any cash award.

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