21-year-old Indian athlete’s success story takes a disturbing turn after viral fame
Chandigarh: Indian powerlifter Keyaa Kunal Banerji had every reason to savour a breakthrough moment after producing one of the most eye-catching lifts of her young career. Instead, the spotlight that followed her medal-winning performance quickly turned into an unsettling battle against online abuse, impersonation and manipulated AI-generated images.
The 21-year-old announced herself on the international stage at the 2026 IPF World Sub-Junior and Junior Classic Powerlifting Championships in Sun City, South Africa, where she competed in the Junior Women’s 47kg category.
Banerji weighed 45.70kg but managed to pull an extraordinary 140kg in the deadlift more than three times her body weight. The lift earned her the silver medal in the discipline and became the defining moment of her campaign.
While she finished fifth overall in her weight category, her deadlift performance became the talking point. France’s Ines Herbaux topped the deadlift standings with a 165kg effort, while Banerji matched Ireland’s Blathnaid O’Dwyer’s 140kg but finished ahead to claim silver.
The numbers underline the scale of Banerji’s progress. At the 2025 National Championships, she recorded an 82.5kg squat, 47.5kg bench press and 127.5kg deadlift for a 257.5kg total. A year later, she raised those figures to 95kg in the squat, 52.5kg in the bench press and 140kg in the deadlift, taking her total to 287.5kg.
Her spectacular pull soon went viral, drawing widespread attention beyond the powerlifting community. But what began as sporting recognition took a disturbing turn.
Banerji has spoken publicly about the harassment that followed her sudden rise to prominence. She said she encountered sexual harassment online, fake accounts using her identity and disturbing messages, while her photographs were also allegedly manipulated using artificial intelligence.
The athlete said thousands of AI-generated images using her face and body appeared online without her consent, turning what should have been a celebration of sporting excellence into an unwanted invasion of privacy.
The episode also affected her social-media presence. Banerji said her earlier Instagram account, which was private and had only around 300 followers, was suspended. She subsequently created a new account, explaining that she wanted to retain some control over the narrative surrounding her sporting achievements.
For a powerlifter whose focus is the platform, the barbell and the next personal best, the unwanted attention has been particularly jarring. Banerji has made it clear that her motivation lies in challenging herself through the sport rather than becoming an internet celebrity. Her breakthrough in South Africa was built on months of training, technical precision and the ability to execute under competition pressure.
Her 140kg deadlift remains the headline statistic a lift exceeding three times her body weight and enough to secure a world-level silver medal. But the reaction surrounding that achievement has also highlighted the darker side of viral sporting fame, particularly for female athletes.
Banerji’s story, therefore, extends beyond a medal table. It is a reminder that behind every viral clip is an athlete who deserves to be recognised for performance, discipline and competitive grit not subjected to the misuse of technology or harassment simply because her achievement captured the public imagination.
For now, the barbell remains Banerji’s real arena. Her challenge is to build on the breakthrough, add more weight to the total and continue pushing her competitive ceiling. The online noise may have become louder, but her strongest statement remains the one she made on the platform which is 140kg, deadlift, silver medal.
