The Rigveda is a collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns and is considered to be the oldest surviving literary work in India, dating back to around 1500-1200 BCE.

Valmiki is considered the 'Father of Indian Literature' as he is believed to have composed the epic Ramayana, one of the most influential works in Indian literature.

Thirukkural, also known as Kural, is a famous Tamil epic poem written by Thiruvalluvar. It consists of 1330 couplets and covers a wide range of topics, including ethics, politics, love, and wealth.

Sanskrit has the richest literary tradition among Indian languages, with a vast body of literature spanning several millennia. It is the language of many ancient Indian texts, including the Vedas, Upanishads, and epics like the Mahabharata and Ramayana.

Tulsidas is considered the greatest poet of the Bhakti movement. He is known for his epic poem Ramcharitmanas, which is a retelling of the Ramayana in the Awadhi dialect of Hindi.

Rabindranath Tagore was the first Indian author to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913, for his collection of poems, Gitanjali.

Hindi has the largest number of speakers among Indian languages, with over 400 million native speakers. It is the official language of the Indian government and is widely used in education, media, and business.

Salman Rushdie is known for his novels 'Midnight's Children' and 'Shame', which have gained international recognition and acclaim.

Arundhati Roy is known for her novel 'The God of Small Things', which won the Booker Prize in 1997.

Aravind Adiga is known for his novel 'The White Tiger', which won the Man Booker Prize in 2008.

Jhumpa Lahiri is known for her novel 'The Namesake', which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2004.

Kiran Desai is known for her novel 'The Inheritance of Loss', which won the Man Booker Prize in 2006.

Amitav Ghosh is known for his novel 'The Glass Palace', which was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2000.

Amitav Ghosh is known for his novel 'The Hungry Tide', which won the Man Asian Literary Prize in 2005.

Amitav Ghosh is known for his novel 'The Shadow Lines', which was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 1988.