Inducted into the revered Uttar Kamalabari Satra at the age of four, Bhabananda Barbayan learnt the nuances of Sattriya culture there under the able guidance of gurus Paramananda Barbayan and Tuniram Barbayan (nritya), Cheniram Barbayan (bayan), Kamal Bargayan (gayan), and Baluram Bargayan and Gupiram Bargayan (oja). Today, he is an exponent himself, imparting lessons, as well as conducting workshops, besides holding lecture demonstrations on Sattriya, travelling far and wide.
At 17, he became the youngest Barbayan of the Sattra. Sattriya dance was introduced by the great 15th century Assamese seer, Srimanta Sankaradeva, who used it as a tool to preach. Being a great performing artist himself, the Vaishnavite saint skillfully mixed entertainment with devotion. Today, Barbayan has taken the dance form beyond Satra boundaries and performed in several countries, including France, Switzerland, Germany, Portugal, China, Bangladesh, etc. He is the founder of Sattriya Academy in New Delhi.
Now in his thirties, Bhabananda Barbayan has composed a number of solo, as well as group dance numbers and in doing so, he has resorted to wide experimentations, infusing elements of gayan-bayan, matiakhara, Satriya ojapali, bhortal nritya, etc.
In the musical front of Satriya culture, too, he has worked extensively, making compositions based on khols and taals, Satriya raags, etc. His remarkable work even first in Sattriya is an innovative choreography based on ‘ Brindavani Vastra’ a unique textile piece preserved in Musee Guimet, Paris, woven in Assam in 16th century AD, under the guidance of Srimanta Sankaradeva.