Kalidasa Academy.part 2
His (kalidas) best-known work is Sakuntala. This play is considered one of the best not only in Sanskrit literature but in the literature of the world. Kalidasa based the play on the story of Sakuntala as found in the Mahabharata, but he has breathed quite a new and vital spirit into it by introducing several slight but effective changes in the original and also by adding new characters and incidents of high dramatic power. Before Sakuntala, Kalidasa had already composed two plays, the Malavikagnimitra and Vikramorvasiya.
Kalidasa’s genius shone with equal brilliance both in drama and in Kavya or poetry. His two Mahakavyas, Raghuvamsa and Kumarambhava and the lyrical poem Meghaduta are universally regarded as gems of Sanskrit poetry. Both in drama and poetry Kalidasa stands not only unsurpassed but even unrivalled”. For more details read volume 3.
Vikram Kirti Mandir
Established on the occasion of the second millennium of the Vikram era, as the cultural centre to perpetuate the memory of Vikramaditya, the Vikram Kirti Mandir houses the Scindia Oriental Research Institute, an archaeological museum, an art gallery and an auditorium. The Scindia Oriental Research Institute has an invaluable collection of 18,000 manuscripts on various subjects and runs a reference library of important oriental publications. Rare manuscripts in Prakrit, Arabic, Persian and other Indian languages cover a wide range of subjects from Vedic literature and philosophy to dance and music. Palm leaf and bark leaf (Bhurja Patra) manuscripts are also preserved in this institute. Apart from an illustrated manuscript of Shrimad Bhagavata in which actual gold and silver have been employed for the paintings, the Institute has a rich collection of old paintings in the Rajput and Mughal style. The museum also exhibits a rich array of images, inscriptions, copper plates and fossils discovered in the Narmada valley. A huge skull of a primitive elephant is of special interest. Unfortunately the Mandir was closed for Christmas holiday when we went there.
