Influence of Saktas on Folk Music in East India

Influence of Saktas on folk music in East India has led to real modification in the way folk songs are sung. Sakta School of songs flourished after the appearance of Ramprasad in the eighteenth century. Nothing much seems to be known about Ramprasad. He removed from Ambikanagar, in the Khulna district, in the year 1800. It is believed that he was the religious preceptor of the Maharaja of Burdwan. His music was partially based on folk forms, considerably modified. The influence of Ramprasad and his Sakta songs has been of great importance. Like Kirtana, it reached the common man and helped the growth of typical Sakta songs on the same line.

On the other hand, the upper classes of society in the nineteenth century encouraged and inspired leaders of rural parties to come to the forefront for performance of doggerel verses (kavigans), and the music of these parties adopted new folk musical styles, one of the principal phases of this type of songs being the Sakta theme.

From the nineteenth century onwards there were impacts of various popular ideas originating out of social and political pressure on life. Great social changes occurred in rural West Bengal by the end of the nineteenth century. This was followed by the impact of western influence on the urban areas which had far-reaching effect. Folk plays appearing in numbers influenced the rural people considerably. Later, by nineteen-twenties, sporadic compositions of patriotic songs and songs of topical nature were also composed. Towards the latter part, rapid changes in the old form of social life became also responsible for changes in the theme of folk-songs, though the tune and rhythm remained almost the same.

Contribution of Nilakantha Mukhopadhyaya
One of the well known Sakta poets was Nilakantha Mukhopadhyaya, a native of village of Dharani situated in the Burdwan district of West Bengal. He has authored numerous Vaishnava and composed over a hundred Sakta songs. These Sakta songs are sung in various other districts of West Bengal which comprise of Bankura and Birbhum. Nilkantha gained popularity as a good singer as well. He was also the leader of a jatra which was very popular in West Bengal around thirty years ago.