The Unbelievable Transformation: Meet the Boy Whose Skin Changed Overnight

Abiral Chauhan was born in India.

Born to darker-skinned parents, Abiral shared their complexion until the age of 13 when he developed vitiligo, a condition that causes white patches on the skin due to a lack of melanin pigment.

Two years later, the disease had drastically lightened his skin tone. "If you look at my childhood photos, you wouldn't recognize me," he says now, at 19. "I barely recognize myself either."

According to him, the changes started at age 11 when he noticed a small white spot near his eye. "Within two years, these spots had spread over his entire body," his mother explains. "There was a time when his skin didn't look the same for two days in a row. It would change dramatically overnight."

Abiral shares that even today, his school friends struggle to believe that he's from an Indian family, and he often hears adults speaking about him behind his back. "I may look white, but my family and culture are Indian, and I strive to stay true to my identity. Tactless people often ask if I'm adopted, if I'm albino, and other similar questions. It's really hard to hear that as a teenager."

"People used to say to us, 'You're lucky he's white.' They thought they were complimenting me because, in Indian culture, having a lighter-skinned child seems desirable. But I hate it. I would never pretend to be something I'm not because this is who I am. Maybe I look a bit different, but I won't let others make me feel bad about my appearance."

Abiral with his father