In Sanskrit plays written during the Gupta Period women and sudras speak

In Sanskrit plays of the Gupta period, dramatis personae follow a linguistic hierarchy: elite male characters typically speak Sanskrit, while women and lower-status characters such as śūdras speak Prakrit. Historians distinguish Prakrit as the language of ordinary people versus Sanskrit as the elite or learned tongue, a framework used when analysing classical texts and drama [1]. Studies of diglossia in ancient Indian theatre report Sanskrit for higher castes and various Prakrits for lower groups and women; playwrights like Kālidāsa used dialects such as Śaurasenī and Mahārāṣṭrī for different dramatic functions [2]. Accounts of Gupta‑period comedies explicitly note that women and śūdras use Prakrit, supporting option 2 as correct .

Sources

1. [1] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART I, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 3: Kinship, Caste and Class > His torians and the Mahabharata > p. 72
2. [2] https://kb.osu.edu/bitstreams/7079533d-2911-56c9-957f-b5b47f2208b3/download