Keyaa Kunal Banerji’s 140kg deadlift at the 2026 IPF World Sub-Junior and Junior Classic Powerlifting Championships in Sun City, South Africa, travelled far beyond the sport. The lift earned the 21-year-old silver in the individual deadlift in the junior women’s 47kg category. At a bodyweight of 45.70kg, she lifted more than three times her own weight.The attention that followed was not confined to her performance. Banerji faced inappropriate comments about her appearance and AI-generated images using her likeness, prompting her to speak out publicly.For an athlete who had started powerlifting in June 2024, the sudden visibility came while she was still learning how to compete at the highest level. She finished fifth overall in South Africa, with a squat injury affecting her performance. Her immediate focus remains on improving her numbers.The 140kg lift itself had not been part of her original plan.“I was a bit disheartened by the small jump between the two attempts initially because 140 was on the lower end of the range for what we had planned that day with an ideal goal of 145 as a second attempt and 150 as a third pull, but it was a safe attempt in order to get deadlift silver before even attempting my third pull,” she said.Her opening attempt of 137.5kg had moved more slowly than expected. She opted for 140kg on her second attempt, securing silver before deciding whether to go heavier.The overall competition was more difficult. Banerji said she had struggled with a squat injury for months and could barely perform the movement pain-free in training before the championships. The same problem returned on competition day.
Keyaa Banerji (Image credit: Special arrangement)
She had also deliberately cut water weight before the weigh-in to compete as light as possible in her category. She said that helped her deadlift campaign but affected her overall total, estimating that she lost 20–30kg on the combined score.“I have a long way to go on my total and that’s a blessing in disguise, it’s just more room to grow,” she said.Powerlifters compete in the squat, bench press and deadlift, with three attempts in each movement. Their best successful lifts count towards the combined total. Banerji’s deadlift earned her an individual silver, but her problems with the squat affected her overall standing.
Two years into the sport
Banerji began powerlifting during her second year at Ashoka University, where she graduated with a BSc Honours degree in Psychology in 2026. Her coach, Devrath, was a close friend and a former powerlifter who won the 2023 WPC Sub-Junior World Championship.On her first day at the gym, he told her she would compete at the IPF World Championships within two years.“In retrospect, I always look back and smile at how I started the sport in the first place, with Devrath, my coach who is also a close friend, who told me on my very first day in the gym that I’ll be at IPF Worlds in two years,” she said. “Initially, it was almost like a silly bet.”Her deadlift numbers rose quickly. Within a month of starting in June 2024, she was lifting 100kg. Seven or eight months later, she had reached 130kg while weighing around 44kg.She entered the 2025 qualifying cycle, competing at district, state and national level. Watching the World Championships had given her a target, and she believed she could reach that stage herself.“I used to watch IPF Worlds and felt very inspired by the athletes in my weight class, which led me to develop a very strong belief that I’d be there soon,” she said.Training alongside university classes meant a packed schedule. Banerji said she prioritised training and worked around it, trying to protect her sleep, nutrition and recovery. She trained at the Ashoka campus gym during the week and travelled to Gurgaon every weekend to use calibrated metal plates similar to those used in competition.“Since March of 2025 there hasn’t been a single five-month period when I haven’t had a qualifier coming up so it’s been quite packed,” she said.Her parents helped fund competitions while she was in college, travelled with her to nationals and supported her recovery and equipment needs. At the World Championships, teammate Asma Zabuawala stepped in as her handler at short notice, coordinating attempt selections with her coach, preparing warm-up plates and monitoring the scoreboard.“Most athletes have handlers and my teammate Asma Zabuawala stepped up at a moment’s notice to handle my competition beautifully,” Banerji said.
The attention after South Africa
Keyaa Banerji (Image credit: Special arrangement)
Banerji has said the attention after the viral lift has also brought messages from young girls who feel encouraged to take up strength sports and other activities. She wants that visibility to extend to athletes who competed alongside her in South Africa.“Many athletes on the Indian team won medals for the country, and this is a collective win for India. I have so much admiration for the achievements of my teammates, and we’re all Indian athletes, our wins are wins for the country, and we all support each other,” she said.Her appeal is for the country to recognise athletes who put in the work to reach international competition and to create a more positive environment for younger women entering sport.The viral attention has not changed how she approaches powerlifting, she said. Her priority is to recover from her squat injury and keep improving, rather than allowing public visibility to dictate what comes next.“Gaining visibility doesn’t mean the work is finished,” she said. “I’m still a beginner in the sport with only two years of training, and I’d like to continue to grant myself the grace and time to work on my numbers and push myself to become a better athlete.”She has spoken about wanting to win World Championship gold for India. Powerlifting, though, is one of several interests she pursues, alongside yoga, callisthenics, art, travel and martial arts.“My first experience with gaining large-scale public visibility was for an athletic accomplishment, but in my own life, an athlete is just one of the many things I see myself as,” she said.For now, the next target is the total. The deadlift brought Banerji a world medal and a new audience; her work on the squat and the other lifts will determine how far she goes in the sport.
