A 9-year old boy from Kerala in India went viral on social media after the videos of him lighting a LED bulb by touching its electrical contacts were seen online by many. Abu Thahir, from Alappuzha, Kerala, discovered his unusual power when he was returning home with his father after buying a rechargeable LED light bulb. His father, Nizar, said that when he passed the light bulb to his son, it lit up in his hands. Initially, he thought it was some prank, but then he noticed that the bulb was lighting up each time when the electrical contacts were touched on any part of his body.
Thahir’s aunt filmed him and shared the video on social media. The video went viral quickly and family started receiving calls from reporters who wanted to interview and film the boy. Thahir doesn’t care much about the fame and is actually embarrassed by the celebrity status that he is getting, this is why there is no high-quality footage of him available so far.
Another opinion of people is that there is no high-quality video because the prank might be fake. None of the videos or pictures show his entire body so it might be possible that he might be conducting low electrical current through his body. Many think that since his father is an electrician, he might have tempered the bulb and installed a small battery inside.
Joshy K Kuriakose said that this phenomenon might have been caused due to the high salt content in Thahir’s body. He said, “People who sweat more usually have a high salt content in their body. If the level is unusually high. The salt content increases the skin’s conductivity. This could explain why an LED bulb lights up when pressed against Thahir’s body.” He added, “If you connect the two leads of the rechargeable bulb with a wire, it will light up. Thahir’s body it will light up. Thahir’s body is conducting electricity like a wire.”
Thahir cannot light up any light bulb other than rechargeable LED bulbs. If he presses the two contacts on the bottom for a long time, his whole body starts heating up. Nazir is proud of his son’s power. Thahir likes lighting up bulbs with his skin but he doesn’t like the fame that is coming with his ability. Currently, he is preparing for the school exams that he will be taking before summers. Whatever his intentions, he is surely going viral on the internet.
