Rishul Chanana
Founder & CEO at Maximally — builds hackathon platforms for teens.
rishulchanana
Chandigarh, India
Joined November 2025
Network
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Summary
Teen founder and operator who launched Maximally (June 2025) to professionalize and scale hackathons for students and teen builders; under his leadership Maximally runs themed events (Startup Makeathon, AI Shipathon, Steal-A-Thon), organizes bootcamps for builders, builds infrastructure and playbooks for organizers, and has supported over 15,000 builders. He also founded MFHOP (the Maximally Federation of Hackathon Organizers and Partners) to share playbooks, mentor/judge networks, sponsor relationships, and common scoring and submissions frameworks across organizers. maximally+3
Community-builder and event operator: Rishul positions Maximally as a federation-style ecosystem (MFHOP) that shares playbooks, judge/mentor networks, and sponsor relationships to raise event quality and scale participation across schools and colleges. maximally+2
Public writer and thinker: publishes essays on Medium about creativity, purpose, and culture, showing interest in ideas, narrative, and building a personal voice alongside entrepreneurial work. medium+1
Advisor and collaborator across student-startup ecosystems: listed as Growth & Tech advisor on Tapri (Startup World 94 Tapri) and appears in podcasts and press interviews describing Maximally's vision and operations. gotapri+1
Work
Projects
Writing
Deviationism: The Death of Innovation
August 27, 2025Essay arguing that 'originality' is largely remix and that innovation often consists of stacked deviations rather than inventions from zero.
pick your poison. call it purpose.
June 27, 2025Personal/reflective piece on intentional suffering and choosing the pain that builds a meaningful life; presents the idea of a 'freedom quotient' based on chosen hardship.
The Weaponization of Trauma: When Mental Health Becomes an Excuse for Avoiding Responsibility
March 29, 2025Essay discussing the social dynamics where trauma narratives can be used to avoid accountability and arguing for empathy paired with personal responsibility.