Kalidasa was a well-known Sanskrit writer of 4th century AD (circa) who is often regarded as the best poet and dramatist in the Sanskrit Language. His poetry and plays were mostly based on Hindu Puranas and philosophy. 

Little can be said with certainty about his life. However, legend has it that his beauty got him married to a princess called Vidyottama who harassed him about his coarseness of manner and drove him to suicide.

Before he jumped into a well, he prayed to goddess Kali/Saraswati and was gifted with extraordinary wit. He then went on to become the brightest of the nine gems of King Vikramditya’s court in Ujjain.

Three plays authored by him include "Malavikagnimitram", "Abhijnanasakuntalam" and "Vikramorvashiyam". His epic poems are "Raghuvamsha" and "Kumarasambhava", while his lyrical poems include “Meghadoota” and “Ritusamhara”.    In cinema, Kannada films “Mahakavi Kalidasa” (1955), “Kaviratna Kalidasa” (1983) and Telugu film "Mahakavi Kalidasu" (1960) were about Kalidasa. V. Shantaram’s Hindi movie "Stree" (1961) was his take on Kalidasa’s "Shakuntala". In Tamil, R.R. Chandran based his 1966 movie "Mahakavi Kalidas" on the poet’s life.