Ketakadas Kshemananda, also known as Kshemananda Das (c. 17th–late 18th century), was a Bengali poet best known for his work ''Manasar Bhasan'', a rendition of the Manasa Mangal Kavya.

Development of Manasar Bhasan

''Manasar Bhasan'' was part of a Bengali poetic and performance tradition, Mangal Kavya, that was popular in the 13th to 18th centuries, involving sung poetry and religious worship. It tells the story of the snake

goddess A goddess is a female deity. In some faiths, a sacred female figure holds a central place in religious prayer and worship. For example, Shaktism (one of the three major Hinduism, Hindu sects), holds that the ultimate deity, the source of all re ...

Manasa, but notably also depicts everyday village life. The text was used as the basis for ''Chand Manasar Kissa'', a play produced by the Sansriti theater company in 2018 and 2019.

Controversy

When ''Manasar Bhasan'' was published in the 1880s, the title page created the impression that the work was created by two people, "Ketakadas" and "Kshemananda." This was later discovered to be incorrect. Ketakadas was born in Kanthara village( now Ketara), Tarakeswar; his father's name was Shankar Mondal. Kshemananda was a title given to him.

References

Year of birth missing 17th-century Bengali poets Bengali-language writers People from Hooghly district Poets from West Bengal 18th-century Bengali poets {{india-poet-stub