Author: Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan
Alternate names: Rahul Baba; Rāhula Sāṅkr̥tyāyana
Born: 9th April 1893
Died: 14th April 1963
Dates: 29th December 2009
Bio: Rahul Sankrityayan (April 9, 1893 - April 14, 1963) who is called the Father of Hindi Travel Literature was one of the most widely-traveled scholars of India, spending forty-five years of his life on travels away from his home. He became a buddhist monk (Bauddh Bhikkhu) and eventually took up Marxist Socialism. Sankrityayan was also an Indian nationalist, having been arrested and jailed for three years for creating anti-British writings and speeches. He is referred as the Greatest Scholar of all time (Mahapandit) for his scholarships. He was both a polymath as well as a polyglot.