In December 2006, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Japan culminated in the signing of the "Joint Statement Towards Japan-India Strategic and Global Partnership".

[9] India's earliest documented direct contact with Japan was with the Todai-ji Temple in Nara, where the consecration or eye-opening of the towering statue of Lord Buddha was performed by an Indian monk, Bodhisena, in 752 AD.

One indication of this is the Japanese "Seven Gods of Fortune", of which four originated as Hindu deities: Benzaitensama (Sarasvati), Bishamon (Vaiśravaṇa or Kubera), Daikokuten (Mahākāla/Shiva), and Kichijōten (Lakshmi).

[11] Benzaiten arrived in Japan during the 6th through 8th centuries, mainly via the Chinese language translations of the Sutra of Golden Light (金光明経), which has a section devoted to her.

[13] Buddhism has been practised in Japan since its official introduction in 552 CE according to the Nihon Shoki[14] from Baekje, Korea by Buddhist monks.

[21] Ancient records from the now-destroyed library at Nalanda University in India describe scholars and pupils who attended the school from Japan.

Modern popular culture based upon this folklore, such as works of fantasy fiction in manga and anime, sometimes bear references to common deities (deva), demons (asura) and philosophical concepts.

Sanskrit, a classical language used in Buddhism and Hinduism, is still used by some ancient Chinese priests who immigrated to Japan, and the Siddhaṃ script is still written to this day, despite having passed out of usage in India.

[25] Relations between the two nations have continued since then, but direct political exchange began only in the Meiji era (1868–1912), when Japan embarked on the process of modernisation.

In this environment, a number of Indian students came to Japan in the early twentieth century, founding the Oriental Youngmen's Association in 1900.

[30][31] Sureshchandra Bandopadhyay, Manmatha Nath Ghosh and Hariprobha Takeda were among the earliest Indians who visited Japan and wrote on their experiences there.

Pan-Asian ideals and the Indian independence movement saw India and Japan grow closer, reaching their apogee during the Second World War.

Relations between Britain and Japan had started to deteriorate since the end of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance on 17 August 1923 due to American pressure.

Japan started the Pacific phase of the Second World War by attacking British, Dutch, and American possessions in Asia.

At the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, Indian Justice Radhabinod Pal became famous for delivering a dissenting judgment in favour of Japan.

A relatively well-known result of the two nations' was in 1949, when India sent the Tokyo Zoo two elephants to cheer the spirits of the defeated Japanese empire.

[42][43] India refused to attend the San Francisco Peace Conference in 1951 due to its concerns over limitations imposed upon Japanese sovereignty and national independence.

Japan, as a result of World War II reconstruction, was a U.S. ally, whereas India pursued a non-aligned foreign policy, often leaning towards the Soviet Union.

Japan imposed sanctions on India following the test, which included the suspension of all political exchanges and the cutting of economic assistance.

During his tenure as the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Modi had maintained good ties with the Japanese PM Shinzo Abe.

His 2014 visit further strengthened the ties between the two countries, and resulted in several key agreements, including the establishment of a "Special Strategic Global Partnership".

[52]In October 2008, Japan signed an agreement with India under which it would provide the latter a low-interest loan worth US$4.5 billion to construct a railway project between Delhi and Mumbai.

Under the memorandum, any Japanese coming to India for business or work will be straightway granted a three-year visa and similar procedures will be followed by Japan.

They have shared interests in maintaining the security of sea-lanes in the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean, and in co-operation for fighting international crime, terrorism, piracy and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

[62][63] Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is seen by some to have been an "Indophile" and, with rising tensions in territorial disputes with Japan's neighbours, advocated closer security cooperation with India.

[71] The Indian National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team had been dispatched in Onagawa for its first overseas mission and conducted search and rescue operations for missing people.

In February 2005, Doraemon became the 1st anime to be introduced in India [citation needed] which is also aired presently in Disney Channel and Hungama TV.

[77] Starting 3 July 2014, Japan has been issuing multiple entry visas for the short term stay of Indian nationals.

[78] In November 2016, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on a three-day visit to Japan signed a deal with his counterpart Shinzo Abe on nuclear energy.

The forum will focus on strategic projects aimed at improving connectivity, roads, electric infrastructure, food processing, disaster management, and promoting organic farming and tourism in northeast India.