This article covers cultural relations between India and Mongolia, including their shared Buddhist heritage, cultural agreements and events, scholarships and Hindi teaching, and the Indian community in Mongolia. It is based on the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) brief of April 2026.

Shared Buddhist heritage

According to the MEA brief of April 2026, India and Mongolia have interacted since antiquity through the shared heritage of Buddhism, which appears to have reached the Mongolian steppes through Tibet and the Himalayan region. The brief notes that Lamas and students from Mongolia used to travel to Nalanda to study Buddhism, and that many words in the Mongolian language trace their roots to Sanskrit and Pali.

In modern times, the brief credits Prof. Raghu Vira, founding member of the International Academy of Indian Culture in Delhi, and his son Prof. Lokesh Chandra with scholarship on Mongolia's Buddhist heritage. Prof. Lokesh Chandra completed the "New Tibeto-Mongol Pantheon" in 20 volumes with his father and edited 108 large volumes of the Mongolian Kanjur, or Buddhist Canon.

The 19th Bakula Rimpoche, India's Ambassador to Mongolia from 1990 to 2000, is described in the brief as instrumental in reviving 100s of Buddhist monasteries and in setting up Pethub Monastery in Ulaanbaatar. In June 2022, Mongol Post released a commemorative stamp on Rev. Kushok Bakula Rimpoche.

Buddhist heritage projects

Since 2019, the brief says, the Indian mission has undertaken several projects on shared Buddhist heritage:

  • a statue of Lord Buddha and 2 disciples at Gandan Monastery, unveiled virtually by Prime Minister Modi and President Battulga during the President's visit in September 2019, when renovation of the monastery's Museum-cum-Library was also initiated
  • an MoU between Gandan Monastery and the Embassy for the digitisation of 1 million Buddhist manuscripts, signed during the visit of MOS(EA) in November 2021; the project was inaugurated in November 2025
  • telecasts on the national broadcaster MNB of a 55-episode Indian TV serial on Lord Buddha dubbed in Mongolian, which the brief says was aired three times due to popular demand
  • assistance to Gandan Monastery for the 50th anniversary of ABCP and the 3rd edition of the Hinduism-Buddhism Samvaad in Mongolia

In June 2022, 4 pieces of the Holy Buddha (Kapilvastu) Relics from the National Museum of India were exhibited for 11 days at Gandantegcheling monastery, starting on Buddha Day, 14 June 2022, alongside the Mongolian Buddha (Tooth) relic. The brief notes that this came after a gap of 29 years. The relics were brought on a special C-17 IAF aircraft by the Minister of Law and Justice, Shri Kiren Rijiju, and the 20th Kushok Bakula Rimpoche, and were accorded the protocol courtesies due to a State Guest.

The Mongolian Kanjur

  • ICCR donated 50 sets of Kanjurs (Urga and Narthang) to Mongolian institutions and monasteries in 2017.
  • At the 7th IMJCC in December 2020, EAM virtually handed over 25 volumes of the sacred Mongolian Kanjur reprinted by India's Ministry of Culture.
  • In October 2022, 50 more sets of the Kanjur (108 volumes each), reprinted by the Ministry of Culture as part of India@75, were presented to monasteries.
  • A further 40 copies (108 volumes each), sent by the Ministry of External Affairs, were distributed in November 2025.

Cultural agreement and literature

The India-Mongolian Agreement on Cultural Cooperation was first signed in 1961, and a Cultural Exchange Programme (CEP) has always remained in force. The agreement covers cooperation in education through scholarships, exchange of experts and participation in conferences. The CEP was renewed in 2003, 2005, 2009, 2015 and 2019, and most recently in October 2025 during the visit of the Mongolian President.

During the visit of the then Human Resources Development Minister, Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, in July 2002, an MOU on cooperation in education was signed. Indian literary works published in Mongolian, as listed in the brief, include Panchtantra, Ramayana, Shakuntala, Ritu Samhara and Godaan, as well as major Buddhist scriptures.

Mongolian scholars have also contributed. Prof. Gandendarama has translated Indian epics such as the Ramayana and Mahabharata, works of Kalidasa and about 30 more books into Mongolian. Prof. Shirindev translated 8 volumes of the 'Dhammapada' from Pali, installed a life-size replica of the Ashoka Pillar in Uvs Province for Vesak Buddha Day in May 2022 and, according to the brief, has taught Vipassana meditation to more than 40,000 Mongolian nationals. The Mission has had 21 volumes of Indian classic literature translated by Dr. Gendendarm and published with financial assistance from ICCR.

Performances, films and exhibitions

  • A "Festival of India" was held in Ulaanbaatar in November 2015 to mark 60 years of diplomatic relations.
  • A Mongolian dance troupe performed in Indian cities in January 2018, and a traditional Indian dance troupe performed in 3 Mongolian cities, including Ulaanbaatar, in March 2018.
  • A Ladakh Mask Dance troupe performed at the Asian Buddhist Conference on Peace (ABCP) in June 2019 and in Darkhan Province.
  • Under ICCR patronage, an 8-member Mongolian dance group performed during the Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, and in Jammu and New Delhi, in February 2025.

The brief says Hindi films are fairly popular in Mongolia. The serial Mahabharata, dubbed in Mongolian, has been telecast on Ulaanbaatar TV. A Mongolian film festival was held in Kolkata in March 2018, and the Mission held an Indian Film festival in Ulaanbaatar from 27 to 29 March 2019, screening Neerja, Dangal and Queen. Indian film weeks have been held in Khovd Province and Ulaanbaatar, and in 2025 film festivals were held at School no. 69 and the Rajeev Gandhi Polytechnic College.

In February 2025, as part of the celebrations of the 70th year of diplomatic relations, the Embassy opened an exhibition of rare paintings from the 13th century book "Jami Al-Tawarikh" at the Chinggis Khaan Museum on 7 February, in collaboration with the Rampur Raza Library. From 21 to 28 February 2025 it held the "Sanskriti-Indian Art & Craft Exhibition", with nearly 200 artifacts and paintings, with the Zanabazar Fine Art Museum.

Ayurveda Day

The first Ayurveda Day in Ulaanbaatar was marked on 15 December 2017 with an India-Mongolia Scientific Conference on Traditional Medicine. The 3rd was held on 5 November 2018 at Otoch Manramba University. The 6th (November 2021) and 8th (November 2023) were held at the AYUSH centre in cooperation with Pethub Monastery, and the 9th at the Chancery on 29 October 2024, attended by approximately 45 people.

Anniversary and other events

For the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations, 9 of the 25 planned activities were held physically despite Covid. They included a gala concert on 26 January 2021, a pan-Mongolia painting competition that drew 976 entries from school children, the India-Mongolia Friendship Park established in July 2020, gold and silver coins on Mahatma Gandhi minted by Mongol Bank in October 2020, and an exhibition on the ancient bilateral relationship in December 2020.

To mark the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev ji and the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the Mission planted 700 plants in the National Park in October/November 2019 and created an 'India Garden'. It has also set up 'India-corners' in Ulaanbaatar, including at Rajeev Gandhi Polytechnic Institute, CITI University, Etugen University and School no. 69.

Scholarships and education

For the academic year 2022-23, Mongolia was offered 50 ICCR scholarship slots: 20 each under the Aid to Mongolia and General Cultural Scholarship Schemes, and 10 under the Cultural Exchange Programme/Education. A further 10 slots for special courses in Buddhist studies at Varanasi and the Leh Institute have been offered with effect from 2020-2021.

For AY 2025-26, 20 slots were announced under the Kushok Bakula Rinpoche Scholarship Scheme, formerly the Aid-to-Mongolia Scholarship Scheme: 3 for research courses, 7 for postgraduate courses and 10 for undergraduate courses. Mongolian candidates used 27 slots in 2024-25 and 12 in 2025-26. The Mission also arranged the first India Education Fair in August 2019, in which 5 Indian universities took part.

Hindi teaching and the Melody of Ganga

For the last 33 years the Mission has organised Hindi classes in Mongolia, and every year 2 to 4 students receive scholarships to study Hindi at the Kendriya Hindi Sansthan, Agra. The brief says over 320 Mongolian students have learnt Hindi at KHS, Agra and in the classes in Ulaanbaatar.

For the last 24 years, the Mission has organised a pan-Mongolia Indian dance competition for school children, "Melody of Ganga", at the Children Palace in Ulaanbaatar. It could not be held in 2020-2022 due to Covid. The March 2023 edition attracted over 400 children from 13 provinces, and the most recent, on 5 April 2025, more than 450 children.

The Indian community

The brief describes the Indian community in Mongolia as small, numbering about 100 or so according to Mongolian Immigration figures. This figure excludes 2700+ temporary workers, whose number varies with the construction season, deployed at the Oil Refinery Project site in Dornogovi Province and at the ABVCEITO and IMFSS sites in Ulaanbaatar. Most Indians are employed in the organised sector, as teachers or IT professionals, or are self-employed, for example running Indian restaurants.

There is a small number of Persons of Indian Origin, and a small number of Mongolians are connected to India through marriage or by having been born and raised in India. The Embassy celebrates Pravasi Bhartiya Divas and organises get-togethers at Diwali and other festivals, and the brief notes the community's role in promoting cricket in Mongolia.