Indian and Sri Lankan Languages

This question is grammatically incomplete but likely refers to the second most spoken language in India. Hindi is first, Bengali is second. Telugu and Marathi have fewer speakers. The question should specify context (India or worldwide).

Ilayaraja is a prolific composer who has worked extensively in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, and Hindi cinema. While he has composed for over 1,000 films, he has not composed for Bengali cinema. His work in Hindi includes films like 'Sadma' and 'Paa', and he is a legend in all South Indian languages.

Ilayaraja composed most of his songs in Tamil. While he worked across multiple South Indian languages including Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, and Hindi, his primary body of work and largest number of compositions are in Tamil, his native language and the main film industry he worked in.

Sinhalese (or Sinhala) is the native language of the Sinhalese people, who make up the largest ethnic group in Sri Lanka. While Tamil is also an official language and English is widely used for education and business, Sinhalese is the most widely spoken native tongue. Hindi is native to India, not Sri Lanka.

The question phrasing 'very much used after Hindi' is awkward and ambiguous. In terms of native speakers, Telugu has the second-highest number after Hindi. However, in terms of overall usage including official, educational, and pan-Indian communication, English would be the more widely used second language. The answer depends on whether 'used' means native speakers or total users. Without context, the marked answer (Telugu) assumes native speaker count.

Kannada is one of the classical languages of India, officially recognized by the government due to its high antiquity and valuable literary heritage. Bengali, Hindi, and Marathi are not officially designated as 'classical'.

Tamil is widely recognized as one of the oldest surviving classical languages in the world, with a literary tradition dating back over 2,000 years. It is considered the oldest among the Indian languages listed.

Konkani is unique among Indian languages for being officially written in five scripts: Devanagari (official script of Goa), Roman (used in Goa's Christian communities), Kannada (used in Karnataka), Malayalam (used in Kerala), and Persian/Arabic scripts, reflecting the language's spread across multiple regions.

Telugu is often called the 'Italian of the East' due to its musical quality, rhyme, and literary richness. C.P. Brown, a British official who studied Indian languages extensively, famously made this comparison, appreciating the aesthetic and structural beauty of Telugu literature. This nickname highlights the linguistic and poetic traditions of the Telugu language.

Tamil, a Dravidian language, is considered the oldest surviving Indian language with a continuous literary tradition spanning over 2,000 years. While Sanskrit is also ancient, Tamil's spoken and written history is exceptionally well-documented and unbroken.

Tamil is considered the oldest surviving classical language in India, with a literary tradition spanning over 2,000 years. While Telugu, Hindi, and Punjabi are also ancient Indian languages, Tamil has the oldest documented literary history.

Tamil is one of the world's oldest surviving classical languages, with a continuous literary tradition spanning over 2,000 years and pre-dating the other listed languages.

Kannada is spoken by approximately 2% of Maharashtra's population, mainly in border districts adjacent to Karnataka and in urban areas with Kannadiga migrants.

Tamil is spoken by approximately 1% of Maharashtra's population, primarily by migrants in Mumbai and other urban centers. This represents a small but significant Tamil-speaking community.

Telugu is spoken by approximately 1% of Maharashtra's population, mainly in urban areas with Telugu-speaking migrants from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.