Step 1: What to do.
Arrange the playwrights by period, from the oldest to the newest.
Step 2: Place each name on a timeline.
19th century: Bharatendu (born 1850), the father of modern Hindi theatre, and Tagore (born 1861).
20th century: Tendulkar (born 1928, Marathi) and Karnad (born 1938, Kannada).
Within each pair the first named was born earlier, so Bharatendu comes before Tagore and Tendulkar comes before Karnad.
Step 3: Full sequence.
A, B, C, D. The two 19th century writers come before the two 20th century writers.
Step 4: Match with the choices.
Choice 1 shows A, B, C, D, so it is correct.
Choice 2 swaps A and B, so it is wrong.
Choice 3 swaps A and B and also C and D, so it is wrong.
Choice 4 begins with C, which is far too late, so it is wrong.
Always read the options slowly and match each name with a clear fact you know about it. Names that sound close can belong to very different traditions, so do not guess from the sound of a name alone. Writing the key fact next to each name, as done above, makes the elimination quick and safe. This habit also helps in similar questions on theatre personalities, plays and groups.
Final Answer:
The right sequence is A, B, C, D, which is option 1.
\[ \boxed{\text{Option 1}} \]