The monkeys of northern India 's Shimla region have a fearsome reputation - and as this video shows , for a very good reason . A teenager in the area has discovered the hard way that the locals should not be toyed with after his affront to a monkey left him sprawled on his back . Footage captured on a CCTV camera near an office in Shimla , India , shows the playful monkey first jumping onto a ledge to watch pedestrians wander past . Scroll down for video . The teenager wanders past the monkey , who eyeballs him from a ledge as he gives it the middle finger . Much like a human , the monkey interprets the gesture as an insult and responds by throwing himself at the teenager . Catching the teenager off guard , it lands with its feet directly in his face . He is sent sprawling onto the ground , while the monkey quickly bounds back up again to the ledge . It is then the monkey finds himself in a stare down with the young man - who rather cheekily , gives it the middle finger believing it will do no harm . What he did n't anticipate was the monkey rearing its tail , bearing its fangs and launching itself at his face - taking him by surprise and sending him sprawling onto his back . Although he walked away from the incident unharmed , he sat in a state of shock for several moments while the monkey returned to his perch . Those familiar with the Shimla region will be unsurprised - the monkeys of the area have a terrifying reputation . They are known to roam about in gangs , stealing tourists ' food and rummaging through bags and even peoples ' pockets in order to take valuables such as phones and cameras . Monkey bites across the area are common and in some instances , they have caused deaths when people attempting to flee them have fallen from heights . The monkeys of the Shimla region , such as the one featured in this video , have a reputation for aggression .
Teenager was caught on CCTV giving the middle finger to monkey in India . But the monkey interprets it as a threat and launches itself at his face . The teenager is left sprawled on his back and in shock following the attack .