Prelims 1997 · archive
MediumWhich one of the following pairs of composers in different languages and their works on the Mahabharata theme is correctly matched?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (d) Pampa–Kannada
Pampa, the tenth-century Jain poet, composed his Mahabharata-based work in Kannada. Sarala Dasa wrote in Odia, Kashiram Das in Bengali and Tikkana in Telugu, so the other pairs are mismatched.
- ✓ (d) Pampa is one of the three great Jain poets of classical Kannada; his Vikramarjuna Vijaya retells the Mahabharata.
- ✗ (a) Sarala Dasa's Mahabharata is in Odia, not Bengali.
- ✗ (b) Kashiram Das wrote the Bengali Mahabharata; the pairing with Oriya is reversed.
- ✗ (c) Tikkana composed part of the Telugu Mahabharata, not a Marathi one.
Remember · Sarala Dasa – Odia; Kashiram Das – Bengali; Tikkana – Telugu; Pampa – Kannada.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 11 Knowledge Traditions and Practices of India, Part I, Ch 1 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 11 · Knowledge Traditions and Practices of India, Part I, Chapter 1 “Pampa, Sri Ponna and Ranna are three major Jaina poets who wrote in classical Kannada in the tenth century A.D.”
Question: UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) 1997, General Studies paper. UPSC did not publish an answer key for 1997: the answer shown is the one the sources above support. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 24 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·