 seldom does one come across a person, especially from a distant land, who's devoted to your country and wants that his country should come closer to yours. Sai Chiro Musomi, who entered into his 100th year on 16th June 2015, can easily be called an architect of India-Japan relations, as he spent 70 years of his precious life in promoting the bilateral ties. As JIA office bearer, Mr. Musomi considered himself fortunate to have not only met Indian leaders like Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, K.R. Narayanan and I.K. Gujral. But also for having personally known Indian freedom struggle hero, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. Acknowledging the human services of this great lover of India, the Indian government conferred the Padma Bhushan on Mr. Musomi on 30th March 2015 for promoting ties between Japan, the land of the rising sun and India, the land of sunshine. Indeed for Mr. Musomi, it was a special moment when he received the award from President Pranab Mukherjee. When I received the award at the age of 10, I was surprised. At the age of 99, when I heard that he was coming to receive the award, it was just unbelievable. But he made it and I think he did it in an excellent way. Way back in 1992, in recognition of his services in promoting India-Japan ties, Mr. Musomi was conferred the fifth order of the sacred treasure, Zuihu Order, Gold and Silver Rays by the Emperor of Japan. Saichiro Mizumi is one of those wonderful bridges between India and Japan who has sustained the relationship over his entire lifetime. Mr. Musomi joined the Japan-India Association as secretary in 1937, soon after his graduation from Oyoma Gokken University. Since then, there has been no looking back. He remained associated with the JIA till 2007 when he stepped down as office bearer. Established in 1903, the Japan-India Association is the oldest association of Japan with any country. Mr. Mizumi is 100 years of age, and he is 100 years of age except for the childhood has been consecrated to Japan in their relations. It is very difficult to come across people who are so spirited like him. Indeed, India is very, very lucky to have a friend like Ms. Mizumi. The Second World War broke out, soon after Mr. Mizumi joined the JIA. As the Great War drew to a close, the JIA was banned by the Occupation Army as it had cooperated with the Indian independence movement. Not deterred by the adverse turn of events, Mr. Mizumi turned the challenge into an opportunity. He started the India-Japan Economic Promotion Committee. As its executive director, he worked to promote ties with India, which went on to achieve her independence in 1947. Following the signing of the peace treaty between India and Japan in 1952, the JIA regained its original name and Mr. Mizumi became its managing director. Spending a lifetime on cementing the India-Japan relations, Mr. Mizumi was in for a pleasant surprise. When one day he found Prime Minister Narendra Modi, about whom he had heard so much in front of him at an official function. Prime Minister Modi leaned on him and talked to Mr. Mizumi and he too sat silently watching closely. Mr. Mizumi recalls that the warmth of that meeting with Mr. Modi reminded him of the warmth with Subhash Chandra Bose, whom he had hugged so close that they could hear each other's heartbeat. Bose, according to Mr. Mizumi, was the first to look east by turning to Japan, even before India attained independence. Subhash Chandra Bose worked very hard for India. Prime Minister Modi is also working very hard. Bose had broke East's policy. As in the case of Subhash Chandra Bose, Mr. Mizumi helped to organize various events during the visit of the then External Affairs Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1978 and as Prime Minister in 2001. The turn of the 21st century witnessed a dramatic transformation in bilateral ties as it was during the path-breaking visit of Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori in 2000 that the Japan-India global partnership was launched. Since then, there has been no looking back. When Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Japan in September 2014, the relationship was upgraded to special strategic and global partnership, providing the much-needed impetus for the trajectory of relations to soar to new heights. India and Japan share a special spiritual bond through Buddhism. Significantly, Mr. Mizumi was greatly impressed by the Bhagavad Gita. Speaking about his attachment for the Bhagavad Gita, he remarked that he learnt a lot from the book and made use of the knowledge obtained from it in his life. Mr. Mizumi, who entered the 100th year, says the secret of his health is yoga, which formed an integral part of his daily life. I practice yoga every day. She is cherry the food. Mr. Mizumi is fond of photography and when it comes to cherry blossoms, he has captured the beauty of the flowers in all its hues and forms in his camera. He says he loves to present these flowers, but only to those who can protect it. He is sure that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will treasure it. The cherry blossoms in Japan are symbolic of simplicity, spring and innocence. The flowering trees symbolize the renewal of spring and the friendship between nations. Indeed, there is every reason for India and Japan to celebrate the special strategic and global partnership between the two great Asian nations. Thanks to Mr. Mizumi for his painstaking efforts in making this possible by spending each day of his long career spanning nearly a century on strengthening ties between India and Japan. India understands Japan better now. Japan understands India better now. But this is just a beginning.