- A video by Nagaland minister Temjen Imna Along shows KYC facial recognition failing on a Northeast man
- Users criticised the technology for not accommodating features like epicanthic folds common in Indians
- Calls were made for alternative KYC methods such as fingerprint verification for better inclusion
A light-hearted video shared by Nagaland minister Temjen Imna Along has sparked a debate online about limitations of technology. The video shows a man from the Northeast struggling to complete a KYC process because facial recognition technology keeps failing to distinguish between people. The joke is built around a familiar stereotype - that people from the Northeast look alike - but the minister has given it a humorous spin that has amassed more than 3.5 lakh views and over 10,000 likes.
The video has been shared with a simple caption, "Struggle is real" and shows villagers holding the face of the man and stretching his eyelids in a bid to help him get a clear photo for KYC.
Struggle is Real... pic.twitter.com/1WuQprLWA3
— Temjen Imna Along (@AlongImna) August 12, 2026
Users were quick to point out the limitations of technology, urging authorities for a viable solution.
"The technology is the problem not you. They didn't considered all possible cases for Indians," one user commented.
Another user tagged X's own artificial intelligence chatbot Grok asking it to suggest the kind of iris scanner available that can help people with epicanthic fold to scan iris for biometric purpose. Epicanthic fold, also known as monolid eyes, is an eyelid shape commonly seen in people with genetic conditions - in this case, the upper eyelids cover the inner parts of a person's eyes.
"We should create alternative methods if people are facing problems nobody should suffer due to their natural biological traits," a third user commented.
"They should also allow finger print verification as alternative," another comment read.
"I'm sure China, Japan and other south east asian nations must have invented something for this. Why is Indian Govt not adopting something similar?" asked one user.
The Nagaland minister is an active social media user and regularly shares funny videos on his X and other social media handles. Previously, he shared a video featuring Indore's dancing cop, who entertained while managing traffic with Michael Jackson-style moves. Alongside the video was a thought-provoking caption encouraging individuals to create their platforms for self-expression and growth.
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