Jhulan Kumar - (Founder, President, Board Chairman and Director)

Jhulan Kumar is the founder of Open Hands Education Trust as well as President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the registered charity. Jhulan holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in computer science from Mahatma Gandhi University in Delhi, India. He has worked for several IT companies in Delhi, and in 2016 he founded a software and website development company, called Mindindiasoft Technology, with a group of partners from university days.

In 2024 Jhulan became a member of the service organizaton - the Rotary Club of Bodhgaya. He enjoys meeting and serving with other club members, who are working together to make a difference in the community.

Jhulan lives with his wife Pratigya and their family in a village not far from Bodhgaya. He is a hard-working, energetic, devoted, and sincere person, with a very strong commitment to helping others.

Jhulan's dream of starting Open Hands Education Trust - to help children, women and families in rural Bihar who are struggling with poverty - began in 2017. Jhulan believes that his wish to be of service to others has its roots in his own childhood. He states: "My own childhood was one of hardship, poverty and loss. But a miracle happened in my life, and I was very fortunate to meet an amazing array of generous people - who lifted me up, encouraged me and supported me to attend school and university. I want to pass those same opportunities on to others, and lift up many other lives."

Founder’s Story - By Jhulan Kumar
Growing up, my family home was filled with women. I was lucky to have so much love from my mother and sisters in my early life. However, multiple tragedies struck our home when I was still a child. My brother died in road accident, leaving an infant grandson for my mother to raise. My brother-in-law was left with a brain injury in the same road accident, leaving my sister as a single parent. My father died soon afterward of a sudden heart attack, leaving my mother widowed.

Great responsibility was placed on my mother’s shoulders - to care for the family and try to educate me and my four sisters. It was very difficult as she did not have any job skills, and she had to work in the fields to support us. Her wages were small and we often only had one meal a day. It was a struggle to survive.

At a young age I witnessed and lived through these struggles. Our social status in the village declined, and we became the object of community ridicule. I could see how gender inequality in Indian society made life even harder for my mother and sisters. As the sole remaining male in my family, I felt a responsibility to care for my family. So at the age of 12 I went to Bodhgaya to beg for money to buy food for my sisters. I did this for many months and started to learn English. Then I realized I could work as a guide for tourists, showing them around Buddhist temples, which earned money for my family.

At age 15 my life began to change when a kind westerner visited our school and offered to help with my education. I took a three month program at the English Language Institute in Bodhgaya. In 2008 when I was 17, I was practicing my English in the Buddhist temple and once again my life began to change. There I met an amazing Australian couple, Celia and Grant Fuller and their children. This family kindly offered to help support my family while I completed grade 12, and continued their support by sending me to university where I obtained a degree in computer science.

Two other incredibly generous women, Cecilia Thorpe from Britain, and Priscilla Fox from United States, also helped me with some of my university expenses.

My Australian family, the Fullers, continued to provide their love and guidance through many educational choices, insecurities, and fears in moving to Delhi from my simple rural life. Always at the end of phone calls or emails, their advice flowed, and they supported my journey into manhood. They believed in me, which gave me the courage to push harder and excel.

I bow in humble gratitude to all of these people who have helped me along the way to achieve my goals.

I graduated from university and married my beautiful wife Pratigya. I began to work for an IT company in Delhi, and eventually started my own company. My mother, who had started a tiny grass-thatched shop in the village, was able to transform it into one of bricks and mortar. Our mud home in the village has also been transformed in a similar way. My two sisters married and had children, and my mother and I continued to raise my nephew and give him a good education.

After my mother died of cancer in 2019, my wife and I moved back home to my village, where we continue to raise and educate our young son, as well as our nephew. Our village is not far from Dadwan village where the Open Hands Education Trust is located.

I continue to work, mostly online, with my soft-ware company which is based in Delhi, and with my website development company. And I put my heart into the work of the Open Hands Education Trust charity.

In my early life I learned first-hand what it is to live in poverty, to be hungry and to have little hope for the future. I also learned through the “miracles” that came into my life in the form of kind and generous people - what it is to have people who believe in me and are willing to give me a helping hand. My goal in life now is to help others as I was helped, to pass on the opportunities that I was given, and to lift others up as I was lifted up.

Thankyou for becoming part of my story