Daad, dinai, khujli, daadar, jaadu—names that echo across homes in Jharkhand, Bihar, Gujarat, and Odisha—are all terms for what medicine calls ringworm or tinea.

Once considered seasonal, this common fungal infection now persists year-round, thriving in crowded homes, hard labour, limited water, poor nutrition, and unequal access to care, quietly becoming endemic among the poor.

This photo shows widespread fungal infection of the skin affecting various body parts from a woman in Orissa.