India’s Forrest Gump
He wanted to run 100km a day for 100 days. He almost made it.
THEY called him India’s Forrest Gump and “Faith Runner”. Others called him Madman and Skeleton.
Indian ultramarathoner Samir Singh had a goal of running 10,000km in 100 days. And he very, very nearly made it.
On a very hot summer morning on April 29, Samir Singh set off from his house in northern Mumbai, India, until the southern tip of the city about 20km away reported the Hindustan Times.
And he kept on running. Everyday.
Samir spent nearly three months running within Mumbai using donated clothes and equipment. He had a GPS watch, a basic mobile phone for emergencies and 200 rupees (RM13) a day.
He ran until Sunday, Aug 6, when his near inhuman feat finally came to end. His GPS watch read 9,964.19km
Tormented by blisters, illness and injuries, he had gotten to within 36km of his 10,000km goal when pain and exhaustion beat him, reported AFP.
The five-time ultramarathon winner lost 16kg from his exertions and weighed just 40kg at the end of his challenge.
“I have focused on my goals with determination and nurtured my dreams despite cracked heels and fractured joints,” Singh said.
Singh was spotted one day by Mumbai documentary-makers Vandana and Vikram Bhatti, who named him “The Faith Runner”.
“We met him on the 47th day of his challenge and were taken aback by his story. So, we have been running a Facebook campaign to create awareness and generate funds for Samir,” Vandana Bhatti told AFP.
Fans joined him for several stretches of his run each day.
Singh’s run was longer than the Great Wall of China (5,500km) and further than the distance from Mumbai to London (7,200km).
Samir is a believer in the doctrines of Swami Vivekananda and Sattvik values, grounded in the essence of a simple life.
“I have always had a simple diet. I like protein juice, daal (pulses), chawal (rice) and boiled potatoes,” he told India Today. “Sattvik food is important, it can increase our age.
“It is written in our holy scriptures. That’s all I needed to eat and that’s all I ate.”
Samir, who is a running coach, also told the Hindustan Times, “People say that the body has limits, my students have complained of being advised against overusing their bodies.
“But according to the holy scriptures, the body has no limit. If you have dreams, your body will take shape accordingly. My experience is testament to the same. God has given us our bodies and (only) our mental capabilities define its limitations.”