The beginning of the 15th century opened a new horizon for Oriya poets. It coincided with the most glorious period of Oriya history.

Kapilendra Dev (1434- 1467), a worthy son of the Orissan soil, usurped the kingdom from the hands of the 'Gangas, a southern dynasty, and became the monarch of Orissa. He conquered vast territories of the southern peninsula up to the Krishna River in the south and Gulbarga in a number of battles created an atmosphere of self-confidence in the Oriyas as a heroic nation, and they directed their attention to improving their language and literature. As a result, a great poet like Sarala Das emerged from the society.

King Kapilendra Dev also encouraged his people to write in Oriya and he himself included one Oriya poem in his Sanskrit work Parashurama Vyayoga and accepted Oriya as the state language, in place of Sanskrit and Tamil, and he issued a number of royal orders on Oriya. His ardent love for Jagannatha and his full dependence on Him, contributed a lot to bring about a creative atmosphere.