Korean in India

[Anchor Lead]

The popularity of the Korean language has soared in India recently. Indians of various age groups are learning Korean to land better jobs or start their own business. Let’s take a look.

[Pkg]

A classroom at King Sejong Institute in India is packed with students learning Korean even on a workday. As more and more Korean businesses are establishing a presence in the Indian market, the demand for employees fluent in Korean keeps rising.

[Soundbite] Student taking Korean Classes : "I have been visiting Korea every year since I started my business over ten years ago. I want to learn Korean to improve communication."

[Soundbite] Student taking Korean Classes : "I began to learn Korean because my family runs a business involving Korean products. One of my co-workers is also Korean."

The number of students learning Korean at the King Sejong Institute in India surged from just 30 three years ago to 200. Korean classes are provided even on weekends. Special lectures and training commissioned by businesses are also becoming more professional. Thanks to such efforts, nearly 20 students were able to land jobs at companies that have business ties with Korea.

[Soundbite] Sung Seo-bin(Teacher, King Sejong Inst.) : "Only about 25 percent of our students learn Korean because of K-pop or Korean TV shows. More students learn the language to find jobs."

The popularity of the Korean language is expected to rise even further in India as the number of Korean firms operating in the country continues to grow.