Indians in Thailand

Thai Indians are Thai people with full or partial Indian ancestry. But these ancestral ties are usually left out of statistics. About 65,000 Indian Thais have full Thai citizenship, but around 400,000 persons of Indian origin settled in Thailand mainly in the urban cities. Intermixing and interethnic marriages of the earlier migrants have led to a large indigenous Thai Indian community.

An opinion poll in 2010 stated that 37% of Thai people had positive views about India, contrasted with 37% of Thai people having negative views about India.

History
Since ancient time, there have been various exchanges between the India and Thailand. India was known as Jambudvipa and South East Asia was known as Suwannabhumi.

Indo Thai trade relations go back to 500 BCE at least where evidence indicates presence of trade relations with north India (Etched carnelian beads) and south India (Indo -Pacific beads).

Buddhism and Hinduism originally arrived to Thailand from India and spread over the centuries. King Ashoka sent monks from India to countries overseas to spread Buddhism, and the first major site was established at the city of Pataliputra in 218 BE. It was also heavily influenced by Theravada Buddhism by contact with Sri Lanka.

During the Sukhothai and Ayutthaya periods, evidence of the presence of sizable number of Indians in the Thai court is described by a number of western travelers. However most of the contemporary Indians came to Thailand after 1920, and during the first half of the 19th century.

The Mariamman Temple, Bangkok is the first modern temple built in the South Indian architectural style. It was built in 1879 by Vaithi Padayatchi, a Tamil Hindu immigrant.

British East India Company
Modern Indian communities have been around since the 1860s of the British Raj era. Most of the Indians arrived in the last century, notably from Tamil Nadu and other areas of Southern India. Some others came from Northern India such as Delhi, Punjab, Rajasthan and some from Gujarat.

Some Thai Muslims, especially in the Southern part of Thailand, have Indian ancestry. A notable number of Sikhs established a small area in Bangkok called Phahurat which grew into a strong town rivaling Chinatown, who tend to have jobs in business rather than as professionals due to their cultural values.

The historical number of the Indian population in Thailand can be seen in British consular statistics; however, these figures often lumped Indians together with Sinhalese and Malays. According to 1912 statistics, there were 30 Indians registered in the Chiengmai (Chiang Mai) consular district, 41 Indians and Malays in the Puket (Phuket) consular district, 40 Indians and Malays in the Senggora (Songkhla) consular district, and 423 Indians, Sinhalese, and Malays in the Bangkok consular district. These figures were also believed to be a gross undercount of the true population; for example, the Bangkok consular district had registered only 517 British subjects, but other estimates claimed the number was 20 times higher.

Tourism
The Tourism Authority of Thailand granted a 30 day visa-exemption status for Indian citizens between the 10th November 2023 and 10th May 2024. Discussions are ongoing as to a long term mutual visa-free status for citizens of India and Thailand respectively, joining Myanmar and soon Sri Lanka. Thailand became the preferred destination of Indian tourists according to accommodation reservation platform Agoda.

India became one of the largest inbound markets for tourism in 2019, and by 2021 it had supplanted China as the largest source of tourism to Thailand. Malaysia was the largest source of tourism in 2022, which along with India helped Thailand surpass it's tourism targets of ten million.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand has been heavily promoted Thailand as a tourism destination in India, and has offered all Indian citizens visa-on-arrival and even periods of visa free entry. The country is viewed as having "rich culture, stunning beaches, glittering temples, adventure sports, mesmerizing nature, and buzzing nightlife". Several destinations such as Phuket have been trying to attract more Indian tourists.

By 2022 India and Malaysia remained the two top sources for inbound tourism to Thailand. 1.6 million tourists from India visited Thailand during 2023.

Oyo Hotels has a large presence in the country and wider region (South East Asia was the first foray outside India for the company). It attained one million guests within three months soon after opening. A notable number of entertainment establishments in Thailand are owned by Indians, including clubs, bars, ladyboy entertainment, accommodation, gay bars and restaurants.

India is also a major tourist destination for Thai people, and was the fifth most popular destination for Thai tourists outside East Asia in 2017.

Notable people

 * Aloke Lohia - Billionaire Businessman
 * Ammar Siamwalla - One of Thailand's most prominent economists
 * Lek Nana - Businessman and Politician
 * Napakpapha Nakprasitte - Thai actress and Model
 * Savika Chaiyadej - Thai soap actress
 * Nishita Shah - Businesswoman
 * Ratana Pestonji - Thai film director, producer, screenwriter and cinematographer
 * Santi Thakral - Member of the Privy Council of King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand
 * Vidya Dhar Shukla - Chief Hindu priest of Thailand