Babasaheb Purandare

WHY IN THE NEWS?

Padma Vibhushan Babasaheb Purandare took his last breath on November 15, 2021, at Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital in Pune.

About:                         

He was 99 years old and on life support. His last rites were performed at Vaikunth crematorium in Pune.

Who was Babasaheb Purandare?

Babasaheb Purandare was a celebrated historian, author, and theatre personality. His full name was Balwant Moreshwar Purandare. He was famous for his work on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The author wrote several books on Shivaji Maharaj, his administration as well the forts from Shivaji’s era. He also directed ‘Jaanta Raja’, which is a popular play on Chhatrapati’s life. His works are mostly related to Shivaji, as a result, he was often called as Shiv-Shahir.

His awards

The historian was awarded India’s second-highest civilian award, Padma Vibhushan, in January 2019. He was also awarded Maharashtra Bhushan Award in 2015, which happens to be Maharashtra’s highest civilian award. Madhya Pradesh government had awarded him the Kalidas Samman in 2007–08, for his works in the field of drama.

Works of Babasaheb Purandare

Purandare had started writing stories on Shivaji’s reign at a young age. These stories were later compiled and published in a book called “Thinagya” (“Sparks”). His other works include-

1. Book titled Raja Shiva-Chatrapati
2. Book titled Kesari
3. A book on life of Narayanrao Peshwa.
4. A drama called Janata Raja.

Janata Raja Drama

Janata Raja Drama is a widely popular play on Shivaji. It was first staged in 1985. The drama has been staged more than 1000 times across 16 districts of Maharashtra, Delhi, Agra, Bhopal, and the United States, since then. It was originally written in Marathi and later translated into Hindi. The performance of the drama usually starts around Diwali, each year. It is performed by 200 artists, elephants, horses and camels.