Real story behind viral pic of Pune man being used in racist posts against Indians. Who is Rajendra Panchal?

The online material echoed long-running stereotypes circulated by fringe groups abroad, including derogatory remarks about Indian hygiene, appearance, and cultural habits.

A series of posts on X circulated by several US-based accounts had repurposed an old photograph of a Pune resident to push racist messages aimed at Indians, combining anti-immigrant rhetoric with mockery of disability. The image showed Rajendra Panchal, now 40, before he underwent life-changing corrective surgery for a rare jaw disorder.

Panchal, a helper from Pune, had lived with severe restriction of jaw movement for nearly four decades. When he was a year old, he suffered a fall that fractured his jaw. The injury eventually resulted in temporomandibular joint ankylosis — an uncommon condition in which the joint becomes fused to the skull. Because his family could not afford treatment, he spent most of his life unable to open his mouth fully. He survived almost entirely on liquids and thin semi-solids, remained chronically undernourished, and struggled with speech throughout this period.

The Indian meme guy is Rajendra Panchal from Pune. At the age of 1, he fell on his face and misaligned his jaw. His parents were unable to get him medical attention. His jaw fused together, he had difficulty speaking and subsisted on a liquid diet for the next 38 years

In 2018,… https://t.co/MlVMVY1Fgwpic.twitter.com/1O9g16GHQp — Derek Fine Allen(@DFine2002) November 25, 2025

Corrective surgery was carried out only in 2017. The procedure, performed free of cost by maxillofacial surgeon Dr Sameer Garde at Oasis Clinic in Pune, enabled Panchal to eat solid food for the first time in decades. A similar account of his treatment was shared by doctors from MA Rangoonwala College of Dental Sciences and Research Centre, who had also been involved in his case.

Despite this long personal history, several American accounts on X had recently used his pre-surgery photograph to promote anti-Indian commentary. The posts appeared over the past few days and described Indians with slurs, often tying their comments to longstanding narratives around immigration and the H-1B visa. Some posts also attempted to link the image with maps of American technology hubs, suggesting that Indians working in these industries were “replacing” Americans.

Profile pic: Location: pic.twitter.com/vzGLt0jUeu — Not Jerome Powell (@alifarhat79) November 24, 2025

pic.twitter.com/FwOsbm712z

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— Secular Talk (KyleKulinskiShow@bsky.social) (@KyleKulinski) November 23, 2025

One widely shared post, which accumulated more than 11 million views, placed Panchal’s picture next to a map of US tech centres. Another post from a verified account claimed, “This is the face of the H-1B horde replacing real Americans.”

The renewed circulation of this photograph was initially highlighted by a fact-checking account on Tuesday, which posted Panchal’s medical history in detail.

Meanwhile, this surge in hostile content followed a broader pattern documented earlier this year. The Centre for the Study of Organized Hate (CSOH), in a September 2025 assessment, reported a marked increase in high-engagement anti-Indian posts on X since the inauguration of US President Donald Trump’s second term.

The online material echoed long-running stereotypes circulated by fringe groups abroad, including derogatory remarks about Indian hygiene, appearance, and cultural habits. The latest round of posts combined these stereotypes with an image of a man whose condition had no connection to immigration.

Panchal, who has been able to live more comfortably since his 2017 surgery, had no role in the circulation of these posts.