Rabindranath Tagore was a Bengali polymath who lived from 1861 to 1941. He was a poet, novelist, playwright, musician, philosopher, and painter, among other things. Tagore is perhaps best known for his poetry, which was deeply rooted in the Bengali culture and landscape. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913, becoming the first non-European to do so and his work had a profound impact on Indian literature and culture. Tagore was born in Calcutta, India, into a wealthy and influential family. He was educated at home by private tutors and later attended University College London for a brief period. In 1901 he founded the school Visva-Bharati University in Shantiniketan, which aimed to combine the best of Western and Indian education. Tagore was a prolific writer and his work covered a wide range of topics from love and spirituality to politics and social justice. His most famous works include the poem "Gitanjali", the novels "The Home and the World" and "Gora" and the play "The Post Office". He was also a composer and musician and many of his poems were set to music and became popular songs. Tagore was deeply involved in Indian politics and was an advocate for Indian independence from British rule, Rabindranath Tagore was a supporter of social reform and was critical of the caste system and other forms of social inequality. Tagore's legacy continues to influence Indian culture, literature, and politics to this day.