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Born Bamacharan in Atla village, near Tarapith, Sadhak Sri Sri Bamdev Chattopadhyay (1837) was the son of Shyama-sangeet singer Sarbananda Chattopadhyay. Revered as Sadhak-pravar Bamdev, he was considered a true yogi with remarkable supernatural abilities. Though often called Bamakhepa (mad), devout Shakti worshippers view this as "mad of Bama" or divinely intoxicated, a term of high praise in Tantrik traditions. Locals also knew him as Khepa-baba and Bama, and he is regarded as Shri Bam or Bamdev by Shaktas, the Bhairav of Tarapith.

From childhood, he intensely worshipped Goddess Tara at home. Poverty led him to a priest's job at Mauliksha Devi temple in Maluti, but he was dismissed for lacking Sanskrit mantra knowledge. He then worked as a cook there for over a year, continuing his informal night worship of Devi. A significant turn awaited him in Tarapith's cremation ground, where he found work picking flowers for puja at a meager Rs 2 monthly salary. His questioning of the priests about Tara's reality led him to Pisach-siddha Brajabasi Kailashpati, a prominent Tarapith tantrik. Initially observing from afar, Bama was drawn to Kailashpati's teachings, where he first heard of "Kundalini." Despite his lack of education, Bama implored Kailashpati to help him see Tara. After initial reluctance, Kailashpati agreed. On an Amavasya midnight, he initiated Bama with the red robe, trishul, rudraksha, and sindur at the powerful Panchamundi asan known as Vashistha-asan, where Sage Vashistha had performed intense Tara mantra penance. Kailashpati gave Bama the Tara mantra, instructing him to meditate without distraction under penalty of becoming a 'bhrasta-sadhak'. Facing distractions of yoginis and spirits, Bama persevered and finally had darshan on the midnight of the following Kaushiki Amavasya.

Later, he mastered Tantra sadhana under Kaulacharya Mokshadananda, another senior disciple of Kailashpati, in Bamachar. In Tarapith, his notable friend was Nagen Panda, a Tara temple servitor whom he affectionately called Nagen-Kaka (Uncle Nagen), despite Bama's seniority. His assistant, Gadai, provided food and cared for his ashram. Far from being irrational, Bama advocated for temple servitors' wage increases and donated disciples' offerings to waive villagers' taxes and support the freedom struggle through his disciple Tarakhepa, a proponent of non-violence to whom, along with revolutionary poet Mukunda Das, he advised against using guns. These aspects are often overlooked.

His notable disciples included Tarakehpa and Nigamananda Saraswati. It's said that even ghosts feared the guru-shishya duo. Recognizing Nalanikanta's imminent monastic life, Bamakhepa taught him tantra sadhana intensely for 20 days, culminating on an Amavasya night when he persuaded a hesitant Nalanikanta to meditate on a corpse. Instructing him to chant the Tara-beej mantra without distraction until Devi's darshan, Bamakhepa aided Nalanikanta through ghostly challenges with his roars, emphasizing the importance of unwavering faith. Just before dawn, Nalanikanta saw Devi in the form of his wife and then in her iconic form, but was overwhelmed by her "Chandogra" aspect, falling into a trance. Bamakhepa's intense devotion sometimes manifested in unusual ways, such as his reported frustration with the idol of Tara not eating.

Bamakhepa, a fervent devotee of Tara, lived and meditated near the Tarapith temple's cremation grounds. He was a contemporary of Ramakrishna. Leaving home young, he became the disciple of Kailashpati Baba in Tarapith, mastering yoga and Tantric sadhana to become the spiritual head of Tarapith. People sought his blessings and cures. His disregard for temple rules once led to conflict with priests over offerings. However, it's said that Tara appeared in a dream to the Maharani of Natore, instructing her to feed Bamakhepa first as her son. After this, Bamakhepa received precedence in temple offerings. It is believed that Tara granted Bamakhepa a vision in her fierce form in the cremation grounds before embracing him.