Wiki
Someone should make a well-sourced and systematic effort into doing “ancient India worldbuilding”, that could then be referred to by people making books/films about Indian history or historical fantasy.
Like a detailed illustrated wiki including
- drawings of ancient Indian cities, forts, ports, ships, caravans (from @ilustratedIndia /percy brown/oddcompass/balage balogh), as well as technical sketches
- maps
- various exotic tribes and groups, e.g. vrātyas, paṇi, nāgas, niṣādas, mālavas, and the evolution of theological sects (bhagavata, śaiva, the sūta-originated literature, śramaṇa sects of note)
- technologies present, especially highly-prevalent technologies like hydraulic stuff and military tech
- simple tools, writing materials – also what wasn’t present (don’t show people using telescopes or papyrus scrolls, or abundant glassware)
- clothing and hairstyle depictions, as differing by region and caste
- military clothing/armour/weapons, types of soldiers, approx military compositions of various kingdoms
- exotic yantras (e.g. collapsible palaces, Śataghnī etc) and chemicals described in KAS and other texts
- descriptions of various “institutions” – universities, courtrooms, assemblies in monarchies and republics, guilds, debates – and their activities.
- "a day in the life of [each āśrama/each varṇa/courtesans/the king/…]
- descriptions of economic institutions – guilds and corporations, coin mints, merchant caravans on road and sea – and their activities
- markets and the goods most present in them
- “themes” that people would talk about and think in terms of, also themes from the modern memespace they wouldn’t have talked about.
- examples of plots, magic tricks and superstitions as described by Kautilya