What animals live in India?

India is packed with remarkable creatures! You can find Bengal tigers prowling forests, Asian elephants wandering grasslands, and one-horned rhinoceroses wading through rivers in the northeast. The king cobra, one of the longest venomous snakes on earth, also calls India home. India's rivers hide the Ganges river dolphin, a nearly blind creature that hunts by sonar in muddy water. High in the Himalayan mountains, the elusive snow leopard moves like a shadow across rocky slopes. And peacocks — India's national bird — fan out their brilliant feathers right in villages and farmyards, which never gets old to see.

What do kids eat in India?

Kids in India eat some really good food! A favorite is roti, which is a soft flatbread cooked on a hot pan, often eaten with lentil soup called dal. Many families also eat rice with vegetable curries — dishes cooked with spices like cumin, turmeric, and coriander that give the food a rich, deep flavor. India is a big country, so food changes a lot depending on where you live. Kids in the south might eat a crispy crepe called a dosa, while kids in the north might enjoy a creamy dish called paneer, which is a fresh cheese cooked in spiced sauce. A popular snack kids love is samosa — a crunchy pocket of dough stuffed with spiced potatoes. Mango is a beloved fruit there too, and during mango season it shows up in drinks, sweets, and just eaten fresh off the seed!

How do people say hello in India?

In India, one of the most common greetings is 'Namaste' (say it like nah-mah-STAY). People press their palms together in front of their chest, bow their head slightly, and say it as a way of showing respect. You will see this greeting all across India. But India is a huge country with hundreds of languages, so greetings change depending on where you are. In the Punjab region, people might say 'Sat Sri Akal.' In Tamil Nadu in the south, you might hear 'Vanakkam.' With over a billion people and more than 700 languages spoken across India, learning even one local greeting can open a door to a real friendship.

What sports or games do kids play in India?

Herman here, with Rusty nodding along! Kids in India love cricket more than just about anything — you'll see them playing it in streets, fields, and empty lots all across the country. It's a bat-and-ball game a bit like baseball, and in India it's practically a national obsession. Rusty wants to add that kids also play kabaddi, which is a tough team game where one player holds their breath, runs into enemy territory, tags opponents, and tries to get back safely — all in one breath! There's also gilli-danda, a traditional street game played with two sticks that's been around for hundreds of years. And of course, soccer, badminton, and tag-style games keep kids busy in schoolyards from the Himalayan mountains all the way down to the southern coasts.

What's the weather like in India?

India is a huge country, so the weather depends a lot on where you are! The coasts can be hot and humid, the northern plains get baking summers and chilly winters, and the high mountains of the Himalayas are covered in snow. One of the biggest weather events in India is called the monsoon. Every year, from about June to September, heavy rains sweep across most of the country. Farmers count on those rains to grow rice and wheat — the foods that feed hundreds of millions of people. It is one of the ways God provides for so many lives in one place.

Tell me a fun fact about India.

Herman here, with Rusty nodding along! India is home to more than 1,600 different languages. That means if you traveled from one end of the country to the other, you might hear people speaking a completely different language every few hundred miles. Rusty loves this part — India is also the birthplace of chess, a game that has been played there for around 1,500 years. With so many languages and such a long history, India is one of the most layered and storied places on earth. And here is something worth thinking about: many of those 1,600 language groups still do not have the whole Bible in their own tongue. That is one big reason missionaries work so hard there.

What is school like for kids in India?

In India, school days often start early — sometimes before 8 in the morning — and kids wear uniforms just like soldiers heading into battle, except with backpacks full of textbooks! Many schools teach in English alongside Hindi or one of India's many other languages, because India actually has over 20 official languages. That is a lot of homework words to learn. Not every child in India gets to go to school, though. Some kids, especially in poorer villages or rural areas, have to work to help their families instead. That is a hard reality. The good news is that many missionaries and Indian Christians run schools and tutoring programs so that more children can learn to read — and read the Bible for themselves. Knowing how to read can open up the whole story of Jesus for a child.

Who are the unreached people in India?

India is home to hundreds of people groups who have never had a real chance to hear about Jesus. We call them 'unreached' because there is little to no church among them, and most people in those groups have never met a Christian or heard the gospel. Some of the largest unreached groups include the Brahmin, Rajput, Jat, and many Muslim communities — each with their own language, food, clothing, and traditions. Many of these groups live in a region called the 'Hindi Belt' in northern India, stretching across states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Rajasthan. Some have never seen a Bible written in a way they can understand. Missionaries and Indian Christians are working hard to reach them, but the need is enormous — India has more unreached people than almost any other country on earth. That is a big reason to pray and to care about what God is doing there.

How can I pray for the people of India?

India is a land of over a billion people, and most of them have never put their trust in Jesus as their Savior. You can pray that God opens their hearts to hear the gospel — the good news that Jesus died and rose again to rescue them from sin. That is the most important thing anyone in India could ever know. You can also pray for the Christians already living in India, because following Jesus there can be dangerous — some believers lose their jobs, their homes, or even their families when they trust Christ. Pray that they stay strong and faithful. And pray that brave missionaries and Indian church leaders keep finding open doors to share the gospel, and that the Bible gets translated into every language spoken across that huge country.

What is a holiday or celebration in India?

One of the biggest celebrations in India is Diwali, sometimes called the Festival of Lights. People light thousands of small oil lamps called diyas, set off fireworks, and share sweets with neighbors. It is celebrated by Hindus, and for them it marks the return of a king named Rama after a great victory. Here is something worth thinking about: many people in India are searching for light and hope through Diwali, but missionaries and Indian Christians get to share the news that Jesus called himself the true Light of the world. That is a real and lasting hope. You could pray that during festive seasons like Diwali, people across India would hear about Jesus and discover that He is the One they have been looking for all along.

What language do people speak in India?

India has a remarkable number of languages — over 700, by some counts! Hindi is the most widely spoken, and English is used in schools, government, and business across the country. So in one big city, you might hear dozens of different languages just walking down the street. Each major region has its own language, like Tamil in the south, Bengali in the east, and Punjabi in the northwest. This is actually really important for missions work — some of those languages still don't have a complete Bible! Translators are working hard so that every person can read about Jesus in the language they grew up speaking.

What's a famous place to visit in India?

Herman here, with Rusty looking over my shoulder at the map! One of the most famous places in India is the Taj Mahal, a giant white marble building in a city called Agra. It was built over 350 years ago by an emperor named Shah Jahan, and it took about 20,000 workers to finish it. Rusty wants to add that India is packed with incredible history — ancient temples, busy spice markets, and rivers that have been at the center of Indian life for thousands of years. What makes India especially interesting for us explorers is that it is home to over a billion people, and many of them have never heard the good news about Jesus. That is why missionaries work hard to share the gospel in cities, villages, and everywhere in between.

India — Kids Missions Explorer

Bengal Tiger

The Bengal tiger, India's national animal, is a powerful lone hunter that can leap more than 30 feet in a single bound when chasing prey through tall grass.

Indian Elephant

Indian elephants have smaller ears than their African cousins and have been working alongside people in India for thousands of years, carrying logs, joining festivals, and even serving in royal processions.

Indian Peacock

The Indian peacock, the country's national bird, fans out a tail of nearly 200 feathers decorated with iridescent eye-spots to attract a mate during monsoon season.

Roti

Roti is a soft, thin flatbread made from whole wheat flour and cooked on a hot iron pan; it is eaten at almost every meal across India, used to scoop up vegetables, lentils, or curry.

Dal

Dal is a thick, warmly spiced soup made from lentils that has been a daily staple for hundreds of millions of Indian families for centuries, tasting earthy and rich with turmeric and cumin.

Mango Lassi

Mango lassi is a cold, creamy drink blended from yogurt and ripe mangoes that people sip during India's scorching summers to cool down quickly.

India

Things you should know about India

Wildlife you might meet

What’s on the table

Did you know?

Life in India

Missions in India

Pray for India