Indians in Japan

See also: Nepalis in Japan, Burmese people in Japan, and Sri Lankans in Japan

Indians in Japan

जापान में भारतीय 日本にいるインド人
Total population
53,974 (in December 2024) Indian nationals
Regions with significant populations
Tokyo, Kobe, Yokohama
Languages
English Japanese Indian languages: Hindi Marathi Kannada Telugu Tamil Malayalam Punjabi Bengali Manipuri Gujarati Other languages of India
Religion
Hinduism Buddhism Christianity Jainism Sikhism Islam

Indians in Japan consist of those with Japanese citizenship and those with foreign citizenship.

As of early 2026, there are approximately 55,000 Indian nationals residing in Japan. Within Japan's total foreign population of nearly 4 million, India ranks as the 12th largest immigrant group overall, trailing significantly behind Nepal (approx. 273,000) but remaining larger than the populations of Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The demographic is uniquely defined by its high concentration of highly skilled professionals in the IT and engineering sectors; a bilateral 2025 action plan aims to further expand this footprint by targeting the recruitment of 50,000 additional skilled Indian workers by 2030.

Since unification, Japan’s perception of India has evolved from a mythical "Heavenly Abode" (Tenjiku) during the Edo period to a modern strategic anchor, resulting in a foreign policy that prioritizes India as a vital democratic partner for regional stability in the Indo-Pacific. As of 2026 the Japanese government views India as an indispensable strategic partner and its most promising economic destination, focusing on a "Free and Open Indo-Pacific" while actively recruiting high-skilled Indian talent to address domestic labor shortages.

Public opinion in Japan toward India is characterized by a high degree of strategic trust and growing cultural affinity. According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in 2025, a majority of Japanese respondents hold a favorable view of India, with favorability particularly high among younger adults (under 35) and men, who show double-digit leads in positive sentiment over older demographics and women, respectively.

Etymology

Historically, in populations influenced by Chinese characters such as the Japanese, they referred to India as Tenjiku (). Consequently, people of Indian origin were occasionally referred to as Tenjiku-jin (), though this term is now considered archaic and restricted to classical literature or religious contexts. In modern Japanese, the standard endonym for an Indian person is Indo-jin (), composed of the katakana for "India" () and the Kanji suffix for "person" ().

The term Zainichi Indo-jin (, lit. "Indian person staying in Japan") is frequently utilized in government statistics and sociological studies to distinguish the resident diaspora from short-term visitors.

In the broader context of Southeast Asia, the term "Indian" often functions as a pan-ethnic label that encompasses all individuals of South Asian descent, including Nepalis, Sri Lankans, and other South Asians, for example the Indian Indonesians. This linguistic pattern is particularly evident in the use of the term Keling in Malaysia and Indonesia, or Khaek () in Thailand; while these terms are etymologically linked to "India" or "guests," they historically applied to the entire Indian subcontinent. Japanese government administration generally maintains sharper distinctions between South Asian nationalities. Nevertheless, in casual social settings or when referring to South Asian cuisine (such as "Indian curry" shops), the term is frequently used as a metonym for the diverse South Asian community, many of whom—particularly Nepalis—operate a significant portion of the "Indian" restaurants in Japan.

History

Ancient

Evidence for indirect contact between India and Japan dates back to the transition from the Late Jōmon to the early Yayoi period, when the expansion of Austronesian maritime networks began linking the South Asia to the East Asia. Starting from the initial expansion in 3000 BCE, Austronesian groups eventually established settlements in Kyushu, Ryukyu Islands, along the coasts of southeastern India and Sri Lanka, facilitating the transfer of maritime technology and crops across the Indian Ocean. This maratime route is evidenced by the arrival of specialized prestige goods, such as etched carnelian and Indo-Pacific glass beads, which were manufactured in Indian workshops like Arikamedu and transported via Austronesian "relay trade" through the Thai-Malay Peninsula to the Japanese archipelago. Some scholars further argue that the sudden introduction of wet-rice agriculture and bronze metallurgy in Japan was catalyzed by these southern maritime routes, which moved technology from the Austroasiatic and Austronesian spheres of influence toward the Ryukyu Islands and Kyushu. Early interactions are theorized to have occurred at maritime hubs along the Thai-Malay Peninsula.

The Himalayas, Arakan Mountains and Patkai Range formed a significant geographic land barrier between modern-day South Asia and East Asia that historically restricted overland contact. Following the 1st century CE, a complex series of indirect relay trade routes emerged between India and China through Central Asia and the vast arid expanses of Western China, that added to the existing more direct maratime trade routes. The arduous nature of traversing these desert and distant regions was famously written into the 16th-century Chinese novel by Wu Cheng'en Journey to the West. The introduction of Buddhism in Japan is often attributed to the Kudara (Baekje) mission in the 6th century; however, historical scholarship increasingly emphasizes the role of the Maritime Silk Road in connecting Japan with Southeast Asian Buddhist centers; archaeological finds of Southeast Asian-style votive tablets and the influence of Indian Srivijayan artistic motifs in early Japanese statuary suggest a "Southern Route" of influence that bypassed the continental path. This maritime network facilitated the exchange of esoteric texts and ritual objects between the Japanese archipelago and the Buddhist polities of Indochina and the East Indies. While the land-based routes have historically received more scholarly attention due to reasons such as the greater accessibility of archaeological sites, modern economic historians argue that the maritime routes were actually more significant in terms of trade volume and cultural exchange.

These early connections laid the foundation for more formal exchanges, such as the 8th-century arrival of the Indian monk Bodhisena to consecrate the Great Buddha at Tōdai-ji. Bodhisena did not travel as a solitary figure; rather, he arrived in Japan in 736 CE as part of a massive diplomatic entourage of nearly 600 people carried aboard four imperial Kentōshi ships. His immediate retinue included religious disciples, monks, and scholars, and even brought a troupe of musicians to introduce Southeast Asian performing arts to the Nara court. This large-scale mission included not only clergy but also diplomats, servants, and specialized craftsmen, facilitating a broad transfer of South Asian and Southeast Asian material culture directly into the Japanese capital. This collective mission was instrumental in the cultural landscape of the Nara period, as the group brought with them South Asian and Southeast Asian music, dance, and ritual expertise that were showcased during the "eye-opening" ceremony of the Great Buddha at Tōdai-ji in 752 CE.

Colonialism, Sakoku and Pax Britannica

Portuguese colonial voyage to Japan

The establishment of the Nanban trade route between the Estado da Índia and Japan led to a significant demographic exchange, characterized by the movement of South Asians to the port of Nagasaki. Portuguese carracks operating from Goa, Ceylon and Malacca were frequently manned by "Lascars"—sailors recruited from South Asia. During the 16th and 17th centuries, Indian contact with Japan was largely facilitated through the maritime network of Portuguese India, particularly via the trading hub of Goa. Indian sailors, soldiers, and merchants, collectively referred to by the Portuguese as lascars or banian (merchants), accompanied Portuguese carracks traveling the Nanban trade route between Goa and Nagasaki. This presence is prominently documented in 16th-century Nanban art, where dark-skinned South Asians are depicted alongside Portuguese merchants and Jesuit missionaries walking the streets of Nagasaki. These Indian participants were integral to the transfer of commodities and cultural practices between the two regions, often acting as intermediaries in transactions involving Indian textiles, spices, and Portuguese firearms. Small numbers of these individuals settled permanently in the city, integrating into the local Christian community until the implementation of the Sakoku edicts in the 1630s, which forced the expulsion of most foreign residents to Macau.

Following the expulsion of the Portuguese, the Dutch East India Company (VOC) became the sole European entity permitted to trade with Japan, operating from the island of Dejima in Nagasaki. During the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company (VOC) managed its trade route between India and Japan from its administrative headquarters in Batavia, utilizing Dejima in Nagasaki harbor as its exclusive trading post in Japan from 1641.This trade was supported by an extensive intra-Asian network where Dutch Ceylon and the Coromandel Coast played pivotal roles as suppliers of cinnamon and textiles. The VOC's maritime operations relied heavily on Lascar sailors and domestic workers recruited from South Asia. While the high-ranking officials on Dejima were European, Japanese woodblock prints known as Nagasaki-e frequently depict Dutch merchants accompanied by South East Asian and South Asian attendants and servants. These individuals formed a transient but consistent South Asian presence in Nagasaki throughout the Edo period, though they were strictly confined to the island of Dejima under the Tokugawa Shogunate's maritime restrictions.

Following the end of Sakoku and the opening of Japanese ports to international trade, the expansion of the British Raj's maritime influence in the late 19th century facilitated the establishment of a robust trade corridor connecting South Asia with the Japanese Treaty ports, most notably Nagasaki and Kobe. Driven by the exchange of raw Indian cotton for Japanese manufactured goods, this route relied heavily on Lascar labor—seamen recruited from the Indian subcontinent to man the steamships. These vessels frequently departed from British Ceylon, integrating the island's tea and gemstone exports into the broader East Asian trade network. While many sailors returned home, a small number of South Asian merchants and maritime workers settled permanently in Nagasaki. This fledgling diaspora established some of the earliest South Asian cultural footprints in Japan, serving as essential intermediaries in the trans-Pacific shipping industry and forming the bedrock of the region's international merchant community. The history of modern Indian settlement in Japan goes back more than a century. As early as 1872, a few Indian businessmen and their families had settled in Yokohama as well as Okinawa. In 1891, Tata, then a small trading firm, established a branch in Kobe. By 1901, Japanese government statistics recorded 30 people from British India living in Japan. Local statistics of the Hyōgo Prefecture government showed 59 Indians living in the prefecture in 1905, among whom all but one were men.

Imperial Japan onwards

After the destruction wreaked on Yokohama in the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, the Indian traders there migrated to Kobe; from then on, Kobe became the center of Japan's Indian community's growth.

Japanese operation in South Asia in 1942. Nagumo's forces are shown at the bottom of the map.

By 1939, on the eve of World War II, the number of Indians in Hyōgo Prefecture had reached 632. However, due to British sanctions against Japan and the 1941 halt of shipping between Japan and their homeland, many closed their shops and left; by 1942, there were only 114 remaining.

India was considered an important potential colony for Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity. Indians in Malaya (modern day Malaysia and Singapore) were often treated more favorably by the Japanese due to the importance of India in the global war plans of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. In comparison, Chinese were sidelined due to the ongoing war between Chinese and Japanese forces in China.

Prior to 1990, the Indian community in Japan remained centred in the Kobe area. However, after 1990, the numbers in Tokyo began to show a sharp increase. Migrants who arrived in the 1990s included industrial trainees sent by Japanese car manufacturers which had set up factories in India. IT professionals and their families also came to Tokyo, settling primarily in Setagaya and Minato wards.

In 2016, the two sides signed the "Manufacturing Skill Transfer Promotion Programme" agreement for training 30,000 people over 10 years. In 2021, Japan and India signed an agreement to allow Indian citizens to obtain the specified skilled visa, which allows Indians to work in several fields including nursing, industrial machinery, shipbuilding, aviation, agriculture and the food services industry.\

The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has noted that India is viewed by the public as an "indispensable partner" for regional security, particularly within the framework of the "Free and Open Indo-Pacific." This sentiment is reinforced by economic data; for instance, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) has ranked India as the most promising destination for overseas business expansion for four consecutive years as of 2026. While strategic alignment remains the primary driver of India's popularity, cultural interest is also rising, with bilateral initiatives aiming to facilitate the exchange of 500,000 personnel over five years to deepen people-to-people ties.

Business and employment

The Indian Water Fountain in Yamashita Park, Yokohama was donated by the local Indian community to remember those who perished in the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, including more than 90 Indians.

Indians in Japan largely fill more professional roles due to a combination of the language barrier and lower salaries for the specified skilled visa, for which there are only 434 Indians. There are far more students. The first batch of construction workers from India arrived in Japan in December 2019.

Indians represent a growing and notable influence in the world of IT. As of 2000, there were also around 800 Indians working in the IT industry in Japan, up from 120 in 1993. Kenichi Yoshida, a director of the Softbridge Solutions Japan Co., stated in late 2009 that the Indian engineers are becoming the backbone of Japan's IT industry and that "it is important for Japanese industry to work together with the India." Japan has been increasingly looking to India as a source for IT workers and talent.

Another 870 Indians were employed as cooks.

Japan also become the new destination for Indian nurses in 2023, with salaries that are over eight times higher than those found in India. Many Indian nurses in Japan come from the private sector because private hospitals in India often offer lower salaries than government hospitals. Indian nurses working in Japan can save over 1 lakh per month.

Others are engaged in trading, importing the Indian handicrafts, garments, precious stones, and marine products, and exporting Japanese electronic goods, textiles, automotive parts, and jewellery.

Communities

Mahatma Gandhi Bust in Nishi Kasai

Kobe Jain Temple

Mahatma Gandhi bust in Hiroshima, Japan

Tokyo

As of 2018 3,758 people of Indian ancestry, about 10% of the people of Indian origin in Japan and about 30% of the people of Indian origin in Tokyo Metropolis, reside in Edogawa, Tokyo. The Nishikasai area of Edogawa Ward has a high concentration of Indian origin families. The Indian community increased when engineers came to Japan to fix the Y2K bug. Indian people settled in Nishikasai due to the proximity to the Tokyo Metro Tozai Line, which connects to their places of employment. India International School of Japan (IISJ) and Global Indian International School Tokyo caters to the Indian expatriate community.

A bust of Mahatma Gandhi was installed in Nitta No. 6 Park in the Nishi-Kasai area of Edogawa City, Tokyo, as a gift from the Government of India and a symbol of Japan–India friendship and goodwill. The bronze sculpture, including its pedestal, stands approximately 1.8 m high and 0.6 m wide, and was created by Indian sculptor Naresh Kumawat. The unveiling ceremony took place on 28 July 2024, attended by India’s Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar, India’s Ambassador to Japan Sibi George, and Edogawa Ward Mayor Takeshi Saito, among others.

Kobe

The Indian community in Kobe has developed primarily since the late 20th century, as professionals, traders, and business owners from India settled in the Kansai region. Kobe’s role as an international port city and its proximity to Osaka made it an attractive location for commerce, manufacturing, and information technology-related work. Over time, a small but stable Indian population emerged, supported by community organizations, cultural associations, and religious institutions, reflecting the broader pattern of Indian migration to western Japan.

Hiroshima

The Indian community in Hiroshima, though small (a few hundred residents including professionals, students, and families), remains active through groups like the Japan-India Association of Hiroshima. In May 2023, during the G7 Summit in Japan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a bronze bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Hiroshima, gifted by India as a symbol of friendship, peace, and non-violence. Crafted by artist Ram Vanji Sutar, the sculpture stands near the Peace Memorial Park, embodying Gandhian ideals in a city scarred by the atomic bombing.

Cuisine

An Indian restaurant in Tokyo

The majority of the Indian restaurants in Japan are a "fusion" of Nepali and Indian cuisine, who are by far the largest South Asian ethnic group in Japan, but many restaurants are also run by Indians and Sri Lankans, the latter of whom number around 35,000 and make the third largest South Asian ethnic group after Nepalis and Indians.

Historical and Cultural Exchange

The culinary relationship between India and Japan was historically characterized by the indirect transmission of dietary philosophies and ingredients via the spread of Buddhism and maritime trade. Imperial decrees by Emperor Tenmu in 675 CE that prohibited the consumption of meat. This period saw the development of Shojin ryori, a sophisticated Japanese temple cuisine rooted in Indian Ayurvedic principles of balance and the "Rule of Five". While direct trade of "canoe plants" like the coconut was primarily limited to Austronesian routes between Southeast Asia and coastal India, spiritual and medicinal items such as black pepper and sugar reached Japan as rare luxuries during the Nara period, often brought through the entourage of Bodhisena, who presided over the dedication of the Daibutsu at Tōdai-ji.

Religion

Benzaiten shrine, Inokashira Park

Jainism

Main article: Jainism in Japan

Indians in Japan speak a number of different languages and follow various religions; there is little correlation between religion or language and profession, except in the case of the Jains, many of whom work in the jewellery industry. The Jains are generally concentrated around Okachi-machi in Taitō, Tokyo.

Sikhism

There are Sikh gurudwaras in both Kobe and Tokyo; the latter is of more recent provenance, having been founded in 1999 in the basement of an office building. Some Sikhs employed as unskilled labourers in small and medium enterprises had to cut their hair short and remove their turbans in violation of the principle of kesh, because their employers are unfamiliar with their customs and do not give them any latitude in their style of dress. They consider this as just a temporary adaptation to Japanese society. However, this practise is not common among Sikhs in skilled professions such as IT.

Education

India International School in Japan, Tokyo

Global Indian International School, Tokyo Campus

Indians who send their children to school in Japan generally select English-medium schools.

The first Indian-specific school, India International School in Japan, was established in 2004 in Tokyo's Koto ward at the initiative of some of the old trading families based in Tokyo and Yokohama.

The Global Indian International School, a Singapore-based school, has operated a branch in Tokyo since 2006, and plans to open another in Yokohama in 2008. They follow the Indian Central Board of Secondary Education curriculum. Other migrants leave their children behind in their native states, either with grandparents or at the boarding schools, in order to avoid interrupting their education.

Jeevarani "Rani Sanku" Angelina established the Little Angels International School (now Musashi International School Tokyo), which caters to Japanese students.

Tourism

The leading motivations for Indian tourists to Japan are eating Japanese cuisine, sightseeing, shopping, walking around and experiencing Japanese culture and history. March 2024 marked the highest ever number yet of inbound tourists from India to Japan. Indian films have periodically used Japan as a filming backdrop, the most iconic being Love in Tokyo (1966), Youngistaan (2014) and Tamasha (2015).

Community organizations and activists

India Club in Kobe

One of the earliest Indian community organisations, the Oriental Club, was established in 1904 in Kobe; it changed its name to The India Club in 1913, and continued operating up to the present day. More were founded in the 1930s, including the Indian-dominated Silk Merchants' Association, the Indian Social Society, and the Indian Chamber of Commerce. In 2000, Indian expatriates living in Edogawa, Tokyo, founded the Indian Community of Edogawa. Others include the Indian Community Activities Tokyo, whose Diwali celebration draws 2,500 participants, as well as the Indian Merchants Association of Yokohama. In 2017, the All-Japan Association of Indians (AJAI) was established with support from several Indian associations in Japan, with a singular focus on serving the community through welfare activities.

Jagmohan Chandrani, head of the Edogawa Indian Association, want to increase the amount of Indians in Japan in the future, and views Nishi-Kasai as a model for all neighbourhoods in the future. He says the future of Japan is cosmopolitan.

Lekh Juneja, is the chairman and CEO of Kameda Seika, and he advocates for increasing immigration to Japan. He criticise Japanese mindset and culture. He doesn't think it's enough that an employee only speaks or write Japanese.

Yogendra 'Yogi' Puranik, the first person of Indian origin to be elected to office in Japan, says that Japanese people will have to change in order to adapt to an increasing number of foreigners.

Other

Domestic violence

An article in the Japan Times complained that patriarchy perpetuates among Indian immigrants to Japan, whereas Indian women may feel more empowered in societies such as Berlin, Germany. As in the native Japanese culture, many Indian women to Japan rarely stay for career advancement, but rather prefer staying to become a housewife.

Illegal immigration

A number of people born in Japan to asylum seekers or illegal immigrants have reported being told to return to India.

Racism

There have been complaints about facing Islamophobia and racial profiling. Islam is considered a foreign culture within the framework of Japanese multiculturalism and is treated as such by most Japanese people. Large scale opposition to Muslim migration began in the 1990s, albeit targeting those from the Middle East, and Iranians and Pakistanis in particular. In early 2024 an Indian, along with a Black American and Pakistani, sued the Japanese government for racial discrimination; "There's a very strong image that 'foreigner' equals 'criminal'," Pakistan-born Syed Zain told Japanese reporters.

Notable people

Arata Izumi

Anastasia Malhotra

• Anastasia Malhotra, professional tennis player (Indian-British/Greek-British father)
• Arata Izumi, football player (Indian father)
• Bodhisena, Buddhist scholar and monk
• Priyanka Yoshikawa, fashion model
• Sarbjit Singh Chadha, enka singer
• Yogendra Puranik, politician and civil services officer
• Ryuko Hira, investor
• Jaideep Singh, boxer
• Annu Mari, actress

See also

• Indian diaspora
• India–Japan relations
• Japanese–Manipuri cultural relations
• Hinduism in Japan
• Buddhism in Japan
• Japanese people in India
• Nepalis in Japan
• Indians in Thailand

Sources

• Wadhwa, Megha (2021), Indian Migrants in Tokyo: A Study of Social, Cultural and Religious Worlds, London, NewYork: Routledge, 2021, https://www.routledge.com/Indian-Migrants-in-Tokyo-A-Study-of-Socio-Cultural-Religious-and-Working/Wadhwa/p/book/9780367569990
• Waterhouse, David (1991), "Where did Toragaku come from?", in Marett, Allan (ed.), Musica Asiatica, vol. 6, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 73–94, doi:10.1017/CBO9780511896071.006, ISBN 978-0-521-39050-7
• Singhvi, L. M. (2000), "Asia-Pacific Region" (PDF), Report of the High Level Committee on the Indian Diaspora, New Delhi: Ministry of External Affairs, pp. 273–288, archived from the original (PDF) on 6 February 2012
• Minamino, Takeshi; Sawa, Munenori (2005), 在日インド人社会の変遷--定住地神戸を事例として [Changes in Indian society in Japan—focused on the case of Kobe residents] (PDF), 兵庫地理 (in 日本語), vol. 50, pp. 4–15, archived from the original (PDF) on 8 December 2015, retrieved 25 September 2009
• Sawa, Munenori; Minamino, Takeshi (2007), "Emerging of An Indian Community in Tokyo: A Case Study of Nishikasai" (PDF), The Indian Geographical Journal, 82 (1): 7–26, archived from the original (PDF) on 22 December 2021, retrieved 28 September 2009
• Azuma, Masako (2008), "Indians in Tokyo and its vicinity", in Kesavapany, K.; Mani, A.; Ramasamy, Palanisamy (eds.), Rising India and Indian communities in East Asia, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, pp. 255–269, ISBN 978-981-230-799-6

Further reading

• Eston, Elizabeth (2019). Rash Behari Bose: The Father of the Indian National Army, Vols 1-6. Tenraidou.
• Green, Nile (2013). "Shared infrastructures, informational asymmetries: Persians and Indians in Japan, c.1890–1930". Journal of Global History. 8 (3): 414–435. doi:10.1017/S1740022813000351. ISSN 1740-0228. S2CID 162765204.
• Sawa, Munenori (April 2008), "Indian society in Japan" 日本のインド人社会, in Yamashita, Kiyomi (ed.), エスニック・ワールド：世界と日本のエスニック社会 [Ethnic World: Global and Japanese ethnic societies], Akashi Shoten, ISBN 978-4-7503-2758-7, OCLC 226814973
• Sawa, Munenori (October 2008), グローバリゼーション下のディアスポラ —在日インド人のネットワークとコミュニティ [Diaspora under globalisation: Networks and community of Indians in Japan] (PDF), 院人間発達環境学研究科報告書, vol. 13680081, Kobe University, archived from the original (PDF) on 3 June 2022, retrieved 28 September 2009