Kalidasa: Greatest Poet of Classical Sanskrit Timeline

Kalidasa: Greatest Poet of Classical Sanskrit 21

375 – 450 Kalidasa composes the Kumarasambhava Epic poem on the courtship of Shiva and Parvati and the birth of Kumara The Kumarasambhava tells how Parvati wins Shiva and how their son Kumara (Kartikeya) is born. It is one of the great court epics (mahakavya) of Sanskrit literature.
375 – 450 Kalidasa composes the Meghaduta The Cloud Messenger, a lyric masterpiece of Sanskrit poetry In the Meghaduta, an exiled yaksha asks a passing cloud to carry a message to his wife in the Himalayas. The poem's route across India made it the model for a whole genre of messenger poems.
375 – 450 Kalidasa composes the Raghuvamsha Epic poem on the dynasty of Raghu, Rama's ancestors and descendants The Raghuvamsha follows the kings of the solar dynasty, including Rama, across many generations. It is considered one of the finest Sanskrit court epics.
375 – 450 Kalidasa composes the Ritusamhara Lyric poem on the six seasons, often treated as an early work The Ritusamhara describes India's six seasons through the eyes of lovers. Its date is unknown, and some scholars doubt that Kalidasa wrote it.
375 – 450 Kalidasa writes Abhijnanashakuntalam The Recognition of Shakuntala, his most famous drama Based on an episode from the Mahabharata, the play tells of King Dushyanta, the hermitage girl Shakuntala, a curse that makes him forget her, and the ring that restores his memory. It is widely regarded as the masterpiece of Sanskrit drama.
375 – 450 Kalidasa writes the play Malavikagnimitram Court comedy about King Agnimitra of the Shunga dynasty Malavikagnimitram tells of King Agnimitra's love for the maid Malavika. It is generally thought to be the first of Kalidasa's three plays, though it cannot be dated precisely.
375 – 450 Kalidasa writes the play Vikramorvashiyam Drama of King Pururavas and the celestial nymph Urvashi Vikramorvashiyam retells the old story of the mortal king Pururavas and the apsara Urvashi. It is the second of Kalidasa's three surviving plays.
634 Aihole inscription gives the earliest dated reference to Kalidasa Ravikirti's eulogy of Chalukya king Pulakeshin II compares him to Kalidasa and Bharavi In the Aihole inscription at the Meguti temple, dated 634–635 CE, the poet Ravikirti claims to have won the fame of Kalidasa and Bharavi. It is the earliest inscription to name Kalidasa, and it shows his works were finished well before then.
1789 William Jones publishes Kalidasa's Shakuntala in English Sacontalá, or The Fatal Ring, the first European translation of the play In 1789 Sir William Jones published his English translation of Abhijnanashakuntalam in Calcutta. It introduced Kalidasa, and classical Sanskrit literature in general, to European readers.
1791 Georg Forster's German Shakuntala wins Goethe to Kalidasa German translation from Jones's English prompts Goethe's famous couplets Georg Forster translated Jones's Shakuntala into German in 1791 and sent a copy to Goethe. Goethe praised the play in couplets printed in the Deutsche Monatsschrift that same year, and it went on to influence German Romanticism.
1813 H. H. Wilson publishes Kalidasa's Meghaduta in English verse First English translation of The Cloud Messenger, printed in Calcutta Horace Hayman Wilson printed the Sanskrit text of the Meghaduta in Calcutta in 1813, with a translation in rhymed English verse. It made the poem popular in Europe and later had a London edition.
1853 Monier Monier-Williams edits Kalidasa's Shakuntala Scholarly edition of the Devanagari recension with literal translations In 1853 Monier-Williams published an edition of Abhijnanashakuntalam with notes and literal translations of its verses. His full English translation, Sakoontala, or The Lost Ring, followed in 1855.
1865 Karl Goldmark's Sakuntala overture honours Kalidasa's play Concert overture based on Kalidasa's drama premieres in Vienna Karl Goldmark's overture Sakuntala, based on Kalidasa's drama, had its premiere in Vienna in December 1865. Its success helped make the composer's name.
1921 Franco Alfano's opera on Kalidasa's Shakuntala premieres in Bologna La leggenda di Sakùntala opens at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna Franco Alfano's opera La leggenda di Sakùntala, adapted from Kalidasa's play, was first performed at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna on 10 December 1921.
1931 Kalidas, the first Tamil and Telugu talkie, puts Kalidasa on screen H. M. Reddy's sound film opens at Kinema Central, Madras, on Diwali Kalidas, a biographical film directed by H. M. Reddy and produced by Ardeshir Irani, was released on 31 October 1931. It was the first sound film in Tamil and Telugu, and the first in any Dravidian language.
1955 Kannada film Mahakavi Kalidasa retells Kalidasa's legend Honnappa Bhagavathar's production wins the National Film Award for Kannada Mahakavi Kalidasa (1955), directed by K. R. Seetharama Sastry and starring Honnappa Bhagavathar, was based on legends about the poet. It marked B. Saroja Devi's debut and won the award for Best Feature Film in Kannada at the 3rd National Film Awards.
1958 Kalidas Samaroh festival in Ujjain begins to honour Kalidasa Annual festival of the arts opened by President Rajendra Prasad The Akhil Bharatiya Kalidas Samaroh, a festival of Sanskrit drama, music, dance and scholarship, was first held in Ujjain in 1958 and was opened by President Rajendra Prasad. It is still held every year.
1958 Mohan Rakesh's Ashadh Ka Ek Din reimagines Kalidasa's life Play often called the first modern Hindi drama Mohan Rakesh's three-act play about Kalidasa and Mallika, the woman he leaves behind, debuted in 1958. It won the Sangeet Natak Akademi award for best play in 1959, and Mani Kaul filmed it in 1971.
1978 Kalidas Akademi is founded in Ujjain in Kalidasa's name Madhya Pradesh academy for Sanskrit and classical arts The Kalidas Akademi was set up in Ujjain in 1978 to promote study and performance of Kalidasa's works and classical Indian traditions. It organises the annual Kalidas Samaroh.
1980 Madhya Pradesh institutes the Kalidas Samman, named for Kalidasa Major national award for the classical arts The Government of Madhya Pradesh created the Kalidas Samman in 1980. The first awards, for 1980–81, went to the vocalists Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer and Mallikarjun Mansur.
1997 Kavikulaguru Kalidas Sanskrit University opens in Ramtek Maharashtra's Sanskrit university is named after Kalidasa Kavikulaguru Kalidas Sanskrit University was founded in Ramtek on 18 September 1997, with backing from P. V. Narasimha Rao, Sudhakarrao Naik and Shrikant Jichkar. Ramtek is traditionally linked to Ramagiri, where the Meghaduta begins.