A viral video of a young Indian woman pulling an extraordinary weight off the floor has put powerlifting in the Indian sports conversation, with 21-year-old Keyaa Kunal Banerji emerging as the unlikely face of the buzz.Banerji’s stunning 140kg deadlift at the 2026 IPF World Sub-Junior & Junior Classic Powerlifting Championships in Sun City, South Africa, has caught attention not just because it earned her a silver medal, but because the lift was more than three times her competition bodyweight of 45.70kg.Social media users have been sharing clips of the lift while congratulating Banerji, with reactions ranging from admiration for her strength to comments about her appearance. More importantly, several users celebrated the fact that an achievement in powerlifting was generating mainstream sporting discussion in India.
Who is Keyaa Kunal Banerji?
Banerji is a 21-year-old Indian powerlifter competing in the Junior Women’s 47kg category. Her breakthrough performance came in a field where every kilogram matters, with her 45.70kg bodyweight making the scale of her deadlift particularly striking.She finished the championships with a 280kg total, comprising a 90kg squat, 50kg bench press and 140kg deadlift.While she finished fifth overall in the 47kg junior category, Banerji’s biggest success came in the individual deadlift event. Her 140kg effort put her second behind France’s Ines Herbaux, who lifted 165kg.Ireland’s Blathnaid O’Dwyer also lifted 140kg, but Banerji finished ahead of her in the deadlift standings to claim the silver medal.The result represents a significant improvement in Banerji’s numbers over the past year. At the 2025 national championship, she recorded an 82.5kg squat, 47.5kg bench press and 127.5kg deadlift for a 257.5kg total.Her progress continued at the 2026 national championship, where she posted a 95kg squat, 52.5kg bench press and 140kg deadlift for a 287.5kg total.The 140kg deadlift in South Africa therefore wasn’t an isolated achievement. It was the latest step in a rapidly improving career.
Banerji wasn’t India’s only standout performer – Madhura Kar wins four golds
While Banerji’s viral lift has generated the biggest social-media buzz, India had several noteworthy performances at the championships.The standout was Madhura Kar, a young powerlifter from Jalpaiguri, who produced a remarkable four-gold-medal performance in the Sub-Junior Women’s 52kg category.Kar, weighing 49.35kg, lifted 107.5kg in the squat, 60kg in the bench press and 125kg in the deadlift, finishing with a 292.5kg total. She won gold in all four disciplines.Her achievement is particularly notable given her age. A Class XII student from Jalpaiguri, Kar had already established herself at the national level, winning the National Powerlifting Championship in 2024 and retaining the title in 2025.She also won the National Bench Press Championship in Faridabad this year.Earlier in 2026, Kar finished second overall and won silver for India at the Asian Powerlifting Championship in China. Her four-gold haul in South Africa has now added another major achievement to her rapidly developing résumé.
Asma finishes sixth in 84+kg category
India’s third highlighted women’s competitor, Asma Taherali Zabuawala, competed in the Sub-Junior Women’s 84+kg category.Zabuawala finished sixth overall after registering a 132.5kg squat, 75kg bench press and 165kg deadlift, giving her a total of 372.5kg.The three performances underline the breadth of India’s participation at the championships — from the lighter weight categories, where Banerji’s remarkable strength-to-bodyweight ratio became the talking point, to the heavier divisions.
Why Banerji’s lift has resonated
Powerlifting rarely receives the kind of mainstream attention enjoyed by cricket, football, badminton or athletics in India. Banerji’s viral lift, however, has provided an instantly understandable sporting moment: a 45.70kg athlete successfully deadlifting 140kg on a world championship stage.The numbers tell the story. Her deadlift was 3.06 times her bodyweight, while her combined 280kg total was more than six times her competition bodyweight.And that is perhaps why the video has travelled beyond the traditional powerlifting audience.Banerji’s silver medal has given Indian powerlifting a rare viral moment, while Kar’s four-gold haul and Zabuawala’s sixth-place finish have quietly added to a strong Indian showing in South Africa.
