Satyendranath Dutta was an expert in many disciplines of intellectual enquiry including medieval Indian history, culture, and mythology.

[3] His grandfather, Akshay Kumar Datta, was a great thinker, Brahmo social reformer and writer who was the guiding spirit of the Tattwabodhini Patrika.

After passing the school-leaving examination from the Central Collegiate School, he received his graduate-level education from the General Assembly's Institution in Kolkata.

After unsuccessfully joining the ranks of his father in their family business, he quit that to devote his energies entirely to scholarly pursuits.

Dutta wrote under multiple pseudonyms, including Nabakumar, Kaviratna, Ashitipar Sharma, Tribikram Varman and Kalamgir.