Illustration/Devdutt Pattanaik

The epics the Ramayana and the Mahabharata reached their final form roughly 2,000 years ago, between the 3rd century BCE and 3rd century CE. We know this as the Sanskrit used in the epics is based on a grammar codified by Panini, who lived 2,500 years ago. The epics were composed in North India, in the Gangetic plains specifically, and they focus on men - Ram, Krishna and the Pandavas. Female characters exist to prop up male characters.