One of the foremost writers of fairy tales and children's literature in bengali, Dakshinaranjan was born in 1877 in Ulail, Dhaka district of Bangladesh. His profession as an estate manager drew him far into the remote countryside and he developed deep interest and fondness for rural culture and the folk ways of life. He picked up many of his tales from the folk stories and the ballads that were sung in these villages.
His major contribution to Bengali literature was the collection and compilation of Bengali folk and fairy tales in four volumes - Thakurmar Jhuli, Thakurdadar Jhuli, Thandidir Thale and Dadamashayer Thale.