Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s2.t18.1

v2.c10.s2.t18.1

Kalidasa (lived about the second half of the 4ᵗʰ century CE to the first half of the 5ᵗʰ century CE) was an Indian poet, dramatist and greatest representative of classical Sanskrit literature, famous not only in India but across the world. His poetry and plays in Sanskrit reached great literary heights and he is known as the greatest master in the history of ancient Indian literature. Rabindranath Tagore, a literary giant in modern India, considered Kalidasa as an exemplary model and once wrote poems to express his admiration of this great ancient master. Both Kalidasa and Tagore are regarded as great cultural and literary figures in the history of India, with unparalleled degree of fame, achievement and influence. In 1956, the World Peace Council included Kalidasa as one of the world’s literary figures to be commemorated in that year.