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On August 21, a film was released based on the true story of Dashrath Manjhi. His heartbreaking yet inspiring tale begins when his wife was injured in an accident, and the only medical help available was in the next village over…on the other side of the mountain. By the time Manjhi had made the trek around the  mountains and back with the doctor, it was too late, and his beloved wife had died.

Most people would mourn their loss and curse their circumstances, but Manjhi literally took matters into his own hands, in the form of a chisel and a hammer, and set to work digging at the mountain which kept his beloved wife from the help that would have saved her.

Determined to ensure that no one else suffer the same fate as his wife or feel the same grief he felt, Manjhi worked tirelessly throughout all hours of the day, chiseling away at the mountain stone by stone for 22 years, until he had single-handedly completed a road through it, connecting his village to the one on the other side.

▼ The man himself

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At first, the villagers thought Manjhi had gone mad, but as time went on their mocking turned to awe. His determination never wavered, and slowly but surely the mountain path took shape, and in 1982 it was finally completed. What used to be an 80-kilometer (50-mile) journey around the mountain was, thanks to Manjhi’s road, shortened to just 10 kilometers.

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The film, titled Madjhi – The Mountain Man, stars Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui as Madjhi, who says of the storyline: “It’s a beautifully moving story. He did the impossible, and through his actions helped so many people.” The film has received a positive reception, earning a rank of 8.5 points out of 10 on IMDb.

Manjhi himself lived to be 73 years old, dying of cancer in 2007. He was honored with a state funeral by the government of Bihar, where he lived. Recently, over 30 years after Manjhi’s road was initially completed, it has finally been paved. You can even view the pathway through the mountain from space, if you take a look here on Google Maps.

Source: AFPBB News, Wikipedia
Top image: Wikipedia/Prajapatijay22