On August 25, 2025, the Lithuanian Embassy in India celebrated the 400th anniversary of the first Lithuanian in India with several cultural events organised in Old Goa.
The oak sculpture of Andrius Rudamina SJ, the first recorded Lithuanian in India, created by famous Lithuanian woodcarver Juozas Kalinauskas in the traditional Lithuanian folk wood-carving style of idol making, was unveiled by HE Diana Mickevičiene and HE Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão, Archbishop of Goa, Daman and Diu, in the Pilgrimage of Faith exhibition of Se Cathedral, Old Goa.
In her inaugural speech, Ambassador Mickeviciene emphasised that Andrius Rudamina opened the window to India for Lithuanians of the 17th century. His role in Lithuania-India connections is essential as he became the first human bridge between the Lithuanian and Indian people, who have already been connected through the unique linguistic closeness between the Lithuanian language and Sanskrit.
Andrius Rudamina was a young Jesuit who arrived in Goa on August 22, 1625. Born close to the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, the boy had an unstoppable wish to go to India and travelled there at the age of 32. He left Goa for China in 1626.
At the recent inaugural event, Cardinal Ferrăo praised the courage and determination of the young pilgrim from Lithuania who eagerly wanted to learn about the Indian way of life and to establish the first bonds of friendship in 17th-century Goa.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, State Secretary of the Holy See, sent a letter to Cardinal Ferrăo to convey the greetings and blessings of His Holiness Pope Leo XVI to those gathered for the commemoration of Andrius Rudamina SJ and praised his role in fostering interreligious and ecumenical dialogue, which serves as an inspiration for today’s activities of the church.
After the unveiling of the sculpture, the book on Andrius Rudamina was also launched at the Christian Art Museum of Goa. Authored by HE Laimonas Talat-Kelpša, former ambassador of Lithuania in India and currently a Foreign Secretary of Lithuania and illustrated by Elzė Milašiũte of Vilnius Academy of Arts, the book tells the story of young Rudamina on his way to India.
HE Sigita Maslauskaitė Mažyliene, Ambassador of Lithuania to the Holy See and an accomplished painter and art historian, also gave a public talk on parallels between motives and symbols in Christian art of Lithuania and India.
To honour the legacy of Andrius Rudamina and to also mark 130 years from the visit to Lithuania of the first known Indian - Parsi scholar Dr J J Modi in 1895, Lithuania and India agreed to jointly celebrate 2025-2026 as the Year of People to People Connections. Lithuania’s wood-carving art form of God making (dievdirbystė) was recognised as a masterpiece of UNESCO’s oral and intangible heritage.
The festivities in Old Goa were well attended by the local community, Church authorities, Honorary Consuls of Lithuania in India and friends of Lithuania in different parts of India.