science

Monkey-man of Delhi

Monkey-man of Delhi is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Monkey-man of Delhi rather than just read about it. In short: The Monkey-man of Delhi, also known as the Face Scratcher or the Black Monkey, is an unknown anomaly which was reported to be roaming Delhi in mid-2001. The entire incident has been described as an example of mass hysteria in India.

Key takeaways

Monkey-man of Delhi belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Monkey-man of Delhi to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Monkey-man of Delhi from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Monkey-man of Delhi, also known as the Face Scratcher or the Black Monkey, is an unknown anomaly which was reported to be roaming Delhi in mid-2001. The entire incident has been described as an example of mass hysteria in India.

History In May 2001, reports circulated in New Delhi, India concerning a monkey-like creature that attacked people at night. Eyewitness accounts were often inconsistent, but usually described the creature as about four feet (120 cm) tall, covered in thick black hair, with a metal helmet, metal claws, glowing red eyes and three buttons on its chest. Some reports also claim that it wore roller-skates. Others, however, described the Monkey-man as having a more vulpine snout, and being up to eight feet tall, and muscular; it would leap from building to building. In mid 2002, a group of four teenagers from the affluent Nizamuddin East colony tried replicating the act by dressing up in monkey costumes and stole money from local vegetable vendors. All four were apprehended by the police and released with a warning. The perpetrators were later named by the media as Arth Agarwal, Vishal Agarwal, Karan Grover and an underage unnamed accomplice. Over 350 sightings of the Monkey-man were reported, as well as around 60 resulting in injuries. Police released artist's sketches of eyewitness accounts in an attempt to catch the creature. Two (by some reports, three) people reportedly died when they fell from the tops of buildings or down stairwells in a panic caused when they thought they were under attack.

In popular culture

Film In the Tamil film Dhill (2001), a comic character named Ezhumalai (Mayilsamy) boards an all-women’s bus and flirts with a passenger, who turns out to be a plainclothes cop. As Ezhumalai is tackled by the cop, one of his associates, 'Megaserial' Mahadevan (Vivek), jokingly comments from outside: "He is that Delhi Monkey Man! Take him to the [police] station!". The appearance of Monkey-man in Old Delhi is the centre-point of the Hindi film Delhi-6 (2009) directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. In the film, the creature is used as an allegory to represent the evil that resides inside every man alongside God (virtue).

Television In 2012, the Hindi TV series Mrs. Kaushik Ki Paanch Bahuein featured a story track around the mystery of "Kala Bandar" (Black Monkey).

Music The Monkey-man is referenced in "Mysterious Man-Monkey", the 12th track in American cello rock band Rasputina's 2011 album Great American Gingerbread: Rasputina Rarities & Neglected Items.

Print media In the 2011 graphic novel Munkeeman by Tere Bin Laden director Abhishek Sharma, the creature is interpreted as a misunderstood superhero, who was the result of a science experiment gone wrong. The first edition, Munkeeman Vol 1 chronicled the creatures brief appearance in Delhi, and the second edition will feature the creature in Kanpur, based on the incidents reported in February 2002.

See also Vanara Superstition Spring-Heeled Jack Bukit Timah Monkey Man Urban legend Hanuman

References

External links Sanal Edamaruku's first hand report on Monkey man To catch the phantom - Anita Joshua's article in The Hindu Fathers, Michael (28 May 2001). "Monkey Man Attack!". TIME. New Delhi. Archived from the original on 11 February 2025. Retrieved 26 September 2024. Strangemag story Verma SK, Srivastava DK. A study on mass hysteria (monkey men?) victims in East Delhi. Indian J Med Sci 2003;57:355-60

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Monkey-man of Delhi

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Monkey-man of Delhi claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Monkey-man of Delhi before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Monkey-man of Delhi ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Monkey-man of Delhi

In research: Monkey-man of Delhi appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Monkey-man of Delhi in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Monkey-man of Delhi is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2000s in Delhi, Cryptids, Culture of Delhi, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Monkey-man of Delhi outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Monkey-man of Delhi in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Monkey-man of Delhi means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Monkey-man of Delhi out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Monkey-man of Delhi in simple terms?

Why does Monkey-man of Delhi matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Monkey-man of Delhi?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Monkey-man of Delhi.