Founder

Arun Daniel Yellamaty Kumar is the Founder and Director of Youngistaan Foundation. As a young man, Arun dedicated his time and effort to create a platform for community change-makers that is only growing wider and stronger day by day. As a responsible leader, he is able to tap individual talent and skill and merge these with the goals of the organization, ensuring that it is democratic and decentralized in its nature and form. He has succeeded in creating many young leaders who carry forward the work of social transformation, and motivates many others.

In addition to this, Arun is a social entrepreneur, event manager and has been a journalist for nearly 7 years. His columns have appeared in multiple newspapers and he has also been a part time Journalism lecturer for nearly 4 years. An artist at heart, an avid blogger, and a social media buff, he was also one of the speakers at TEDx, Josh Talks TV and many more prominent platforms.

Growing up with his four sisters under the care of a single mother, life wasn’t easy for Arun. There were days when he went to bed hungry. He started delivering pizzas at the age of 18 and then worked at a call center to save up enough money to pay his college fees. After his BA at St. Mary’s in Hyderabad, he got a job he enjoyed but having known what it was to struggle to have enough to eat, Arun didn’t want anyone else to go through the same. 

What started as a few friends simply buying cream-buns from a bakery and distributing them to hungry people on the side of the road, soon became an organization that was registered in 2014 as Youngistaan Foundation. Today, the organization has worked with over 50,000 young changemakers and runs 9 active programs and 3 special projects in partnership with other organizations that are aligned with seven UN Sustainable Development Goals. Since then, Youngistaan Foundation has won many recognitions and has also been featured by several national media houses.

In 2022, Arun was selected to participate in the prestigious International Visitor Leadership Project (IVLP) organized by the US Department of State which took him and a select team of participants across different states in the United States to examine strategies for facilitating youth participation in multiple sectors. 

Arun describes himself as a big foodie and a multitasker, and he dreams to someday make a film, record a music album, and, well, change the world.

Awards: Global Citizen Awardee, by Meridian International Center (USA), Young Achiever of The Year Social Service 2020-21 by Sakshi Media | COVID 19 Warrior Award by Telangana State Government |  Awarded by Telangana Government Women & Child Welfare Dept, Hyderabad District Collector, Telangana State Police Department and others. 

You can email Arun Daniel Yellamaty Kumar at arun@youngistaanfoundation.org!