Govinda Marar was born in 1798 in Ramamangalam village in Kerala.His parents belonged to community of Marars who performed the traditional singing in the temples of Kerala. He took to singing from a very early age. He received his musical lessons from Haripad Ramaswamy Bhagavathar.
He is said to have used a Tamburu having seven strings. At the age of 21, he left his home to begin a life of wandering. He is believed to have sung in many important temples all over Kerala.
After leading the life of a wandering for a long time, he reached the temple of Panduranga in Pandharpur,Maharashtra. He was revered as Paramahamsa Govinda Das. The temple records note that he attained Samadhi in 1843.