The Recognition of Śakuntala: A Play in Seven Acts

His works never cease to astound me...

Kalidasa is India's greatest Sanskrit poet and playwright. Many centuries later, his commitment has not flinched to remain India's most respected bard. When you've read world's greatest plays, you must then read him for the proverbial dessert. For most people, drama was invented in Greece, yet Kalidasa didn't know that, being apart by sea and time. So far as he is concerned, he was as much an inventor of this art. `Recognition of Sakuntala' is a beautiful love story of a married king with a country girl, his deserting her and eventually reclaiming back, by the aid of gods. I've several translations of this play, but Johnson's version is probably the best - at least in English. If Shakespeare or Tolstoy gratify you, Kalidasa will as much.