Koreans initially began to migrate to India during the early 1950s. The Korean Association of India was established at that time by a trio of South Koreans who went into exile after their release from imprisonment in their own country. The 1990s, however, showed the actual beginning and growth of the migration, which grew to approximately 1200 people during the following years. By the 2000s, the size of the Korean community grew immensely, becoming the 25th largest Korean community in the entire world. Some areas in India which show significant growth of the Korean community are

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

, National Capital Region, and

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

Varanasi

Varanasi Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.* * * * The city has a syncretic tradition of I ...

or Kashi or Benaras is one of the major religious cities in India, situated beside the banks of the

Ganges The Ganges ( ; in India: Ganga, ; in Bangladesh: Padma, ). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international which goes through India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China." is a trans-boundary rive ...

river in the state of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

, which welcomes tourists from all over the world. The city witnesses huge numbers of Korean migrants due to the many students attending

Banaras Hindu University Banaras Hindu University (BHU), formerly Benares Hindu University, is a collegiate, central, and research university located in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India, and founded in 1916. The university incorporated the Central Hindu College, ...

(BHU), particularly studying Indian art and aesthetics. This is due to their bond with Buddhism and the legend of marital ties between Princess Heo of Ayodhya in India and King Suro of Gaya, an ancient kingdom in Korea. Places like Bengali Tola and other parts of Varanasi feature Korean-style cafes, restaurants, and

K-Pop K-pop (; an abbreviation of "Korean popular music") is a form of popular music originating in South Korea. It emerged in the 1990s as a form of youth subculture, with Korean musicians taking influence from Western Electronic dance music, danc ...

music stores.

Food

Some Korean-style cafes and restaurants are run solely by Indians, while others are run jointly with Korean friends or relatives. Korean design elements are common, such as wallpaper featuring

Hangul The Korean alphabet is the modern writing system for the Korean language. In North Korea, the alphabet is known as (), and in South Korea, it is known as (). The letters for the five basic consonants reflect the shape of the speech organs ...

script, traditional masks and fans, and low-seating arrangements. Dishes such as

bibimbap Bibimbap * ( ; ), sometimes Romanization of Korean, romanised as bi bim bap or bi bim bop, is a Korean rice dish. The term ''bibim'' means "mixing" and ''Bap (rice dish), bap'' is cooked rice. It is served as a bowl of warm white rice topped wi ...

, containing vegetables, chicken, sticky rice,

soya sauce Soy sauce (sometimes called soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and ''Aspergillus oryzae'' or '' Aspergillus sojae'' molds. It is r ...

, soya chilli paste, and sesame oil, and

rabokki ''Rabokki'' () is a type of ''tteokbokki'' (stir-fried rice cakes), with added ''ramyeon'' noodles. It is a street food commonly sold in ''bunsikjip'' (snack bars). As with other ''tteokbokki'' dishes, eomuk (fish cakes) and boiled eggs are a co ...

, a street food made with ramen, rice cakes, spicy sauce, boiled eggs and noodles, are served.

Music

Varanasi also has K-Pop CDs and poster shows. Koreans, particularly the younger generation, have shown enthusiasm in learning classical Indian music instruments such as the

tabla A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...

and

sitar The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form in 19th-century India. Khusrau K ...

. Many are fluent in Hindi and enjoy Indian cinema and music. The similarity between Korean musical instruments like the

gayageum The ''gayageum'' or ''kayagum'' () is a traditional Korean musical instrument. It is a plucked zither with 12 strings, though some more recent variants have 18, 21 or 25 strings. It is probably the best known traditional Korean musical instr ...

(also called kayagum), a 12-stringed instrument, and the sitar, an Indian instrument with 18, 19 or even 21 strings, has also helped by being an extension of cultural exchange.

Korean language

BHU offers diploma courses in Korean, enabling Indian students to pursue an education in the language.

Extension of India in South Korea

A group of students from the prestigious Wonkwang Digital University or WDU from Iksan, South Korea, came to BHU to attend an exchange programme on ayurveda and yoga and upon their return, established a club named Ganga in WDU. The university includes the Department of Yoga Studies and Meditation. Almost every year, a number of Korean students come to BHU for the exchange programme, initiating the joint signing of a memorandum of understanding in 2005.

References

# # # # # # # # {{Immigration to India Korean diaspora in Asia Varanasi Ethnic groups in Uttar Pradesh

Diasporas in India India–South Korea relations