Kachari tribe

Khelo India Tribal Games: “Perhaps he’s busy at the construction site,” Monikha Sonowal quipped as she tried calling her father again. Moments earlier, Monikha had clinched the gold medal in the women’s 48kg weightlifting category at the inaugural Khelo India Tribal Games 2026 here and wanted to convey the news to her father Padmadhar Sonowal, a mason who spends long days at construction sites to support his family of four and has been the 19-year-old’s biggest supporter in her sporting journey.

Elder of the two siblings, Monikha hails from Batghoria Penbeni Chowk, a small and largely unnoticed locality in Assam’s Dhemaji district, located on the north bank of the Brahmaputra River and situated approximately 425 kms away from Guwahati. Life there moves at a quiet, unhurried pace and for most families in the village, dreams rarely stretch beyond family responsibilities and making ends meet.

But for Monikha, the sound of barbells inside a weightlifting hall became the soundtrack of a dream that refused to stay small. Despite limited resources, her curiosity towards the sport gradually transformed into a passion, inspired by the global success of Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Mirabai Chanu from neighbouring Manipur.