Understand

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India mixes ancient civilizations, fascinating religions, 22 official languages and over 200 other languages and dialects, monuments and cultures with modern technology, economy, and media.

History
Indians date their history from the Vedic Period.This is the period when the Vedas, the oldest and holiest books of Hinduism, were compiled. There is a great dispute for last 150 years, over dating of Vedic period based on Aryan Invasion Theory which claims that vedic people came from Europe / Central Asia and spread their language & culture among ancient Indians. The earliest archaeological traces are from archeological findings of 7000 BC Mehrgarh, Balochistan , Pakistan which growed in advanced,planned urban towns of " Indus Valley Civilization" that peaked around 3300 BC before declining and disintegrating around 1900 BC, possibly due to a drought & geological disturbances. The excavations reveal an extremely advanced urban civilization, with no evidence of weapons or fortifications.

The Vedic civilization influences India to this day. The roots of present-day Hinduism lie in them. Some rituals of Hinduism took shape during that period. Most North-Indian languages come from Sanskrit, the language of the Vedas. These languages together with Sanskrit are members of the Indo-European group of languages. In the 1st millennium BC, various schools of thought in philosophy developed, enriching Hinduism greatly. Most of them claimed to derive from the Vedas. However, two of these schools - Buddhism and Jainism - questioned the authority of the Vedas and they are now recognized as separate religions.
Many great empires were formed between 500 BC and AD 500. Notable among them were the Mauryas and the Guptas (called the Golden Age). This period saw a gradual decline of Buddhism and Jainism. The practice of Buddhism, in particular, disappeared from the Indian mainland, though Buddha himself was incorporated into the Hindu pantheon. Jainism continues to be practised by a significant number who are ambivalent about whether they consider themselves Hindus or not.

Islamic incursions started in the 8th century in the form of raids. Gradually the raiders started staying as rulers. Soon much of North India was taken over by Islamic rulers. The most important of the Muslim rulers were the Mughals, who established an empire that at its peak covered almost the entire subcontinent except the southern and eastern extremities. The major Hindu force that survived in the North were the Rajputs. Eventually the Mughal empire declined, partly under attack from the Marathas who established a short-lived confederacy that was almost as big as the Mughal Empire. The Rajput and Mughal period of North India was the golden age for Indian art, architecture, and literature. It produced the monumental gems of Rajasthan, and the most famous monument of all, Taj Mahal. Two languages, Hindi and Urdu, took root in medieval North India. During the Islamic period, some Hindus also converted to Islam, either by force, or to escape the low social status that the caste system imposed on them, or to gain the benefits of being aligned with the then rulers....