A man who had to have an eye removed when he was 11 due to a rare condition has shared the heartbreaking reactions his appearance provokes in public and online.
Amit Ghose caused a stir with an online video revealing how his artificial eye fits into the rest of his face, with the clip garnering more than 27 million views.
His right eye was removed as a result of neurofibromatosis, a rare genetic condition that causes tumours to grow on the nerves.
The 36-year-old was diagnosed with the issue at birth, but his family only discovered the harmful growth when Amit was two.
“I had to have 26 surgeries, and it kept growing,” Amit told Need To Know.
Amit struggled to come to terms with his new appearance following the eye’s removal, saying he used to hide away from the world, feeling ugly and unwanted.
But as time progressed, the Birmingham native overcame his sense of shame, and today he insists that we have to learn to accept who we are before others can accept us.
25 years on from losing his eye, Amit said he is much happier – and put his improved attitude down to the support of his wife, Piyali.
Amit said: “Everything changed for me when I fell in love with my wife.
“I used to hide my face, and one day she said, ‘Amit, I won’t be marrying one side of your face, I will marry all of it, so learn to love yourself.’
“Now I accept who I am, believe in myself and say to the world, ‘This is me, take it or leave it.’
“When we look in the mirror and give ourselves love, everything falls into place.”
However, Amit also emphasised that odd glances, misunderstandings and trolling are still an everyday part of life.
He explained that people often stare and point at him, while school children approached to ask if his artificial eye was a Halloween mask.
Online, Amit has built a large following by sharing videos about his condition and his prosthetic – but these have attracted the attention of some vile trolls, too.
Amit said: “Online, [I have] people saying I am fake and use a filter to lure views and likes.”
In one video, he shared his routine for putting his prosthetic on in the morning, which was viewed more than 27 million times, with 77,000 likes and more than 1,000 comments.
One fan told Amit: “Ignore the comments, perfection and beauty is not only in physical, it’s about values you have.”
Another user added: “We love you, you are a powerful man.”
Someone else commented: “I have hunch that’s you were made fun of as a kid but now you are a wonderful person, never forget that.”
Despite Amit’s strength and resilience, other less sensitive viewers made cruel jibes.
One said: “Me waiting for him to take the rest of his mask off.”
Another added: “The f*** I just watched [sic]?”
