Hyderabad Trio Helps 50,000 Deaf Indians Land Jobs

When Nita Gopalakrishnan learned Indian Sign Language as her first language from her deaf parents, she gained a superpower most people never develop: seeing the world through different eyes. Now that childhood gift is changing thousands of lives.

In 2020, the 42-year-old special educator teamed up with her husband Chaithanya Kothapalli and deaf ISL teacher Rahul Jain to launch Yunikee, a Hyderabad platform dedicated to helping deaf Indians access equal opportunities. Their mission hit close to home for all three founders.

The idea sparked during a pandemic conversation about fairness. While hearing students continued school online, deaf students got left behind. The trio realized this discrimination extended far beyond classrooms into job markets, skill training, and basic independence.

"Yunikee" translates from Telugu to "I exist. Don't ignore me." The name reflects a harsh reality: unlike other disabilities, deafness remains invisible until someone tries to communicate. Through their platform, the founders wanted to give their community an unmistakable identity.

Rahul brought firsthand experience to the table. He'd spent years searching for jobs in a market that offered deaf workers almost nothing. "We are simply forced to continue our family business because of a lack of options," he explains. Most deaf Indians face the same chokehold of dependency.

Since launching, Yunikee has reached over 50,000 deaf people across India. Their flagship program "Sign Medium" has taught ISL to more than 10,000 deaf adolescents who previously couldn't communicate with their own families.

The platform now offers 120 different courses ranging from stock trading to web development to IELTS preparation. All instruction happens in Indian Sign Language, removing the barriers that kept these students out of traditional classrooms.

Take Dibyendu, a 25-year-old who could only gesture before joining Yunikee's workshops last year. "Earlier, I was not able to express myself freely. Now I can communicate with my family and deaf friends," he shares. Today he works in web development with a future full of possibilities.

The Ripple Effect

Yunikee's impact reaches far beyond individual participants. Their Champions League program helps deaf entrepreneurs launch their own ventures, creating jobs for others in their community. When one deaf person gains independence, entire families transform.

Parents who attend workshops alongside their deaf children learn to truly communicate with them for the first time. Siblings discover their brother or sister has dreams and opinions they never knew existed. Employers gain access to a talented workforce they'd previously overlooked.

For Chaithanya, who left his 25-year corporate career to build Yunikee, watching his wife teach deaf kids revealed a simple truth: people don't need pity or charity. They need the right tools and a fair shot.

Today, 50,000 deaf Indians have that shot, and the number keeps growing.