Mirabai & Lovlina - Not Just 'Northeastern Stars' but Indian Champions

India's Olympic stars on their Tokyo success, and life since.

Mirabai Chanu and Lovlina Borgohain speak to The Quint about their Olympics success and life after. 

(Photo: The Quint)

• Cameraperson: Gautam Sharma

• Editor: Abhishek Sharma

Mirabai Chanu and Lovlina Borgohain are two women whose smile could light up any room, and also, two women whose sheer physical strength could vanquish any opponent on their day.

2021 was the year both these Indian sports stars grabbed the spotlight with success at the Tokyo Olympics. While Mirabai was competing at her second Olympics and looking to vanquish demons from her outing five years back in Rio, Lovlina proved the dark horse of the Indian contingent, taking many, but not herself, by surprise as she finished on the podium in her debut Olympics.

As India celebrates their success, and the success of many sporting stars from the Northeast region of the country, Mirabai and Lovlina have only one request - not to celebrate them as Northeast Indians, but simply as Indians.

Four months have now passed since their meteoric rise to stardom. While both took some time off after Tokyo to celebrate their success, they are now back in the gym for daily training sessions with an eye on a hectic 2022 season that will see many expectations riding on them at the Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games.