Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday called for using artificial intelligence (AI) to take the richness of classical literature—especially the works of poet Kalidasa—to a global audience.
She was speaking at the launch of a “Sanskrit Heritage Model”, introduced through a collaboration between Madras Sanskrit College and the AI firm Articulate 8, at the college campus in Mylapore, Chennai.
Sitharaman said ancient scholars and sages had built Sanskrit grammar and linguistic structure with remarkable precision, and that this accuracy—developed thousands of years ago—forms a strong foundation for integrating Sanskrit with modern AI technologies.
Pointing to the abundance of research and explanatory works available on Shakespeare’s plays, she expressed concern that similar detailed resources on Kalidasa’s literary excellence, imagery and language are not available in sufficient measure in Indian languages or in English. She said AI could help bridge this gap by analysing Kalidasa’s works and quickly compiling insights on his metaphors, vocabulary, grammatical patterns and portrayal of human qualities.
She also noted that Sanskrit’s influence extends beyond India, and stressed the need to consolidate and identify Sanskrit and Indian-language manuscripts, copper plates and related records held in museums, libraries and archives worldwide, using the speed and capability of technology to carry India’s ancient knowledge and linguistic heritage to the world.
