In a chilling reminder of how deeply rooted racism and regional prejudice still are in our society, three women from India’s Northeast were allegedly racially abused, humiliated, and verbally attacked by their neighbours in South Delhi’s Malviya Nagar. What began as a small, everyday issue turned into a moment of public shame captured on video, shared across social media, and watched by millions.
The incident happened during a routine repair at the women’s rented flat. An electrician was fixing an air conditioner when dust from drilling reportedly fell into the neighbour’s apartment below. Instead of resolving the matter calmly, the neighbours stormed upstairs. The argument quickly escalated not into a discussion about cleanliness or inconvenience but into vicious personal attacks and racist slurs.
The video shows the women being mocked for their identity and appearance. They were accused of running a “massage parlour”, a cruel and degrading insinuation meant to question their character and dignity. Slurs were thrown. Their origins were mocked. Their presence in the city was treated like an offense.
The Name Circulating Online
In the middle of the outrage, social media users began identifying the male neighbour involved as Harsh Singh. While authorities continue their investigation, the viral spread of the video has made the incident impossible to ignore. The women say the abuse was not just verbal it was designed to dehumanize them, to reduce them to stereotypes that people from the Northeast have been fighting for decades.
One of the women, seen standing her ground in the video, challenged the false accusations thrown at her, demanding respect and accountability. Her voice shaking but firm has become a symbol of resistance for many who have faced similar treatment in silence.
FIR Filed, Fear Still Remains
A police complaint has been registered and an investigation is underway. But beyond legal action, the emotional damage is real. The women say they now feel unsafe in their own building. Reports that they might be pressured to vacate their home have only added to the trauma as if the victims are being punished for speaking up.
This is not an isolated story. People from the Northeast have long spoken about being stared at, mocked, stereotyped, and harassed in big cities like Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai for their looks, accents, food habits, and culture. The same ugly questions repeat:
“Where are you really from?”
“Are you running a massage parlour?”
“Do you people even belong here?”
This Is Bigger Than One Building, One Street, One City
What happened in that South Delhi building is not just a neighbourly dispute gone wrong. It reflects a deep social sickness the casual racism that hides behind “jokes,” the entitlement that turns disagreement into humiliation, and the dangerous idea that some Indians are more “Indian” than others.
People from the Northeast are not outsiders. They are not guests. They are not stereotypes. They are citizens students, professionals, workers building their lives in cities that claim to be modern and inclusive.
A Question We Must Answer
If three women can be openly abused on camera in the capital city of the country and the video feels disturbingly normal to some then the problem is not just with the abusers.
The problem is with what we tolerate.
This moment should not be forgotten when the next viral clip arrives. It should be remembered as a mirror held up to our society asking a hard question:
What kind of country do we want to be one that looks away from racism, or one that finally says: enough is enough?
