Sanskrit is the language of learning and theology in South India, as it is in the north, but the growth of the bhakti (devotional) movements enhances the crystallization of vernacular literature in all four major Dravidian languages: Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada; they often borrow themes and vocabulary from Sanskrit but preserve much local cultural lore.

Examples of Tamil literature include two major poems, Cilappatikaram (The Jeweled Anklet) and Manimekalai (The Jeweled Belt); the body of devotional literature of Shaivism and Vaishnavism—Hindu devotional movements; and the reworking of the Ramayana by Kamban in the twelfth century.

A nationwide cultural synthesis has taken place with a minimum of common characteristics in the various regions of South Asia, but the process of cultural infusion and assimilation will continue to shape and influence India's history through the centuries.