Nirmala Amarnath, Chairperson - Amara Soundarya Foundation has been recognized as the Most Inspiring Women of the Year - 2022, Bengaluru by BusinessMint.

Smt. Nirmala Amarnath was born on 27th of October 1971 in Bangalore and completed her MA and Diploma in Special Education, Life Skills and Family and Child Counselling. In 1997, she married Sri. KS Amarnath. Unfortunately in 2004, she lost her husband and sister-in-law Smt. Soundarya (Famous Cine Actress) in a plane crash. In order to keep their memory alive, and to realize her dream of serving children, she founded Amara Soundarya Foundation.  

Positions held: 

• Chairperson, Amara Soundarya Foundation (2004-Present) 

• Advisory Panel Member, Central Board of Film Certification, Bangalore (2018-20)

• Director of Youth Services, Rotary Club, Raj Mahal Vilas (2019-20)

Milestones:

• Founded Amara Soundarya Foundation in 2004 under the aegis of Amara Sathvika Social and Educational Trust, of which she is the chairperson. The school caters to children with Autism, Down-syndrome and other Learning Difficulties. The school strives to provide all the facilities required for special needs children, such as special education, therapies and vocational training, under one roof.

• Founded Aryaa Vocational Training Academy which offers beautician course, teachers’ training and life skills to women, with a view to empower them and make them independent. This program has trained over 5000 women all over Karnataka, who have then been certified by Karnataka Vocational Training and Skill Development Centre.   

• Launched Antharmukha in 2012 to create awareness regarding prevention of child abuse. A book titled “Antharmukha, The Silent Victim”, was released as a part of the launch program. The book provides a comprehensive guide to parents to identify and prevent all forms of child abuse.

• Launched various programs such as Sammilana, to facilitate the inclusion of individuals with special needs into mainstream society, Makkala Santhe, to expose society to environmentally friendly ways of living and Mahabharata Mela to revive interest in the epics.

  At Present:

 Currently, Nirmala Amarnath is in the process of expanding Amara Soundarya Foundation to a 10,000 Sq. ft. eco-friendly residential special education center at Hesaraghatta, where she aims to widen to the scope of activities of the institution. The construction of this project was inaugurated on the 27th of January 2021, by Sri. Suresh Kumar, Minister for primary and secondary education, Govt. of Karnataka. At the new location, Nirmala Amarnath seeks to provide all services that are required by differently abled children to lead economically and socially independent lives. The project is being implemented at the cost of Rs. 7 Crore.

Awards and recognitions:

• Smilofy India Foundation, Inspirational Woman Achiever Award – 2021

• Philanthropic society of India – Social Entrepreneur – National Award-2019

• Rex Karamveer Global Fellow – Delhi – 2015-16

• Yuva Global Foundation, Certificate of Recognition on International Women’s Day 2014

• Nagamma Foundation Award, 2009

• Featured in Women’s Era March 2021 edition in Article titled “Empathy in Holistic