Hindi literature includes literature in the various Hindi languages which have different writing systems. Earliest forms of Hindi literature are attested in poetry of Apabhraṃśa like Awadhi, and Marwari languages. Hindi literature is composed in three broad styles- गद्य (Gadya-prose), पद्य( Padya- poetry) and चम्प्पू In terms of historical development, it is broadly classified into five prominent forms (genres) based on the date of production. They are:Ādi Kāl /Vīr-Gāthā Kāl -- [prior to & including 14th century CE.] This period was marked by Poems extolling brave warriors. Bhakti Kāl --[14th–18th century CE.] Prominent genre in this period was Poems of Devotion due to Bhakti Movement. Rīti Kāl /Śṛṅgār Kāl -- [18th–20th century CE.] The major genre of this period is Poems of Romance which are marked with high ornamentalism. Ādhunik Kāl -- [from 1850 CE onwards.] Literally means Modern literature. Navyottar Kāl -- [from 1980 CE onwards.] Literally means Post- Modern literature.

Rahul Sankrityayan was an Indian author, essayist, playwright, historian, scholar of Buddhism who wrote in Hindi and Bhojpuri. Known as "father of Hindi travel literature", Sankrityayan played a pivotal role in giving Hindi travelogue a literary form. He was one of the most widely travelled scholars of India, spending forty-five years of his life on travels away from his home in locations like Russia, Tibet, China, Central Asia, etc.