The introduction of gunpowder weapons into India was in the mid 13th century,^1 becoming more widely used in the 14th and 15th centuries, followed by firearms prominently featuring in 16th century battles like the defeat of the Delhi Sultanate by Babur at Panipat in 1526. Except for firearms, there isn't any major change in weapons over this time - the non-gunpowder weapons before and after the introduction of gunpowder were largely the same.

So, what weapons? The same as in many parts of the world: mostly bow, spear (pike, one-handed infantry spear, javelin, cavalry lance), sword, shield, dagger/knife. Of the less common weapons, the most important were axes, maces, and warhammers/picks. Chariots were used in ancient India, until they were largely replaced by war elephants and cavalry.

It's difficult to find detailed information about such weapons from before the introduction of firearms. Most surviving weapons postdate firearms, and most written works on Indian weapons cover these later weapons. Some of these works discuss earlier weapons,^2,3,4,5 although their main focus is later weapons. Most of those books are out of print and difficult to find, so you might find it useful to refer to books covering only the later weapons^6,7,8. However, note that some of the famous and characteristic Indian weapons, such as the curved talwar sword, the katar dagger, and the pata gauntlet sword, only appear after the introduction of firearms. Also, discussions of Indian weapons often focus on the exotic types, even though these were rare, and did not make a significant appearance on the battlefield. Out of unusual Indian weapons, the main one to note would be the ankush or ankus, the Indian elephant goad. Common weapons such as the bow and spear are discussed much less than swords and the various unusual weapons. Pant^4 discusses archery in detail, and Elgood^5 provides a rare coverage of spears.

1. Iqtidar Alam Khan, Gunpowder and Firearms: Warfare in Medieval India, OUP, 2004.

2. Philip S Rawson, The Indian Sword, Jenkins, 1968 (and reprinted/reissued by other publishers)

3. G.N. Pant, Indian Arms and Armour (3 vols), Army Educational Stores, 1978

4. G.N. Pant, Indian Archery, Agam Kala Prakashan, 1993

5. Robert Elgood, Hindu Arms and Ritual, Eburon, 2005

6. Lord Egerton of Tatton, Indian and Oriental Arms and Armour, Dover, 2002 (reprint)

7. E. Jaiwant Paul, Arms and Armour: Traditional Weapons of India, Roli Books, 2005

8. Robert Elgood, Arms & Armour at the Jaipur Court, Niyogi Books, 2015