Kalle Istvan Eller studied Estonian and English philology at the University of Tartu, but never graduated. He was active in the almanac movement, publishing poetry and essays in manuscript magazines, and as an editor. From 1973, he worked as a forester. He is currently actively engaged in maintaining the Võro language, which is a minor language spoken in southeast Estonia. He is also an activist and leader of the Estonian native neo-pagan faith, and a member of the Estonian Defence League. In 2001, a collection of his poetry written during the Soviet era was published.