Days after Manipur born Indian athlete Mirabai Chanu won a silver medal in women's 49 kg weightlifting at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, actor-model Milind Soman's wife and fitness enthusiast Ankita Konwar has called out the racism that northeast Indians have been subjected to in the country.

Claiming that a northeast Indian person can become an Indian only when they win a medal for the country, Ankita Konwar highlighted the various racist terms used against them otherwise. She added that India is infested with racism as well, besides casteism. Her post read, "If you're from Northeast India, you can become an Indian ONLY when you win a medal for the country. Otherwise we are known as "chinky" "Chinese" "Nepali" or a new addition "corona". India is not just infested with casteism but racism too. Speaking from my experience."

Recently, Indians from the northeast part of the country had to endure racial discrimination from a number of fellow citizens amid the Covid-19 pandemic as their physical appearance is apparently similar to that of east Asian people. One such instance includes a girl from Manipur who was spat on and called "corona" by a middle-aged man riding a scooter on the streets of New Delhi.