A sense of pride in history, research orientation and perseverance to seek the truth, self-control, doggedness, passion, obsession, sharp memory characterize Babasaheb Purandare’s personality. These are supplemented by his sharp intellect, analytical abilities, and his presentation skills through his writing or oration. These qualities have inspired many to take up scholastic study of the life of Shivaji. He is looked up on a guru to those who revere Shivaji.

Purandare created a record of sorts by delivering over 10,000 lectures in the last 50 years spreading the message on the life and mission of Chhatrapati Shivaji. His lecture series on life of Shivaji Maharaj became very famous in country and abroad. His work on Shivaji was acclaimed by prominent historians including G H Khare, Mahamahopadhyaya Datto Waman Potdar, G B Deglukrkar, Setu Madhavrao Pagdi and others. They have not pointed to any lacunae in his works.

Participation in Goa Mukti andolan:

Purandare came in contact with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in his formative years and imbibed the values like patriotism and commitment to nation and society. He worked as a fulltime RSS pracharak also. He, along with his other friends took active part in the Dadra-Nagar Haveli liberation movement. These areas were under the Portuguese occupation even after India became free in 1947. His close friend the late Sudhir Phadke, whose melodious voice had cast a magic spell on Maharashtra a couple of decades ago, had accompanied him to this mission of liberating the areas under Portuguese control. Purandare, along with another notable litterateur Gopal Neelkanth Dandekar visited each and every fort of Shivaji Maharaj and organised in grand scale the 300^th anniversary of Shivaji’s coronation at Raigarh in 1974.

Through his association with personalities like Acharya Atre, GoNiDa, Pu. La. Deshpande, Atal Behari Vajpayee, the Mangeshkar family, Thackeray family, Babasaheb successfully managed to propagate the persona of Shivaji. Shivaji’s biography, he believes, is a study of creation of a person’s character. He aptly showcases and unfolds the character, traits, and persona of Shivaji through his life and times in his writings, discourses, commentaries and plays.

For his works, in the field of drama, he was awarded the Kalidas Samman by the Madhya Pradesh government for the year 2007-08.

The politically motivated controversy:

The pseudo-seculars, progressives and leftists leaders in Maharashtra sought to create a controversy over state government’s decision to confer this prestigious Maharashtra Bhushan Award to such a great, ardent devotee of Chhatrapati Shivaji by raking some trivial issues. They shamelessly raised the ‘caste’ factor in this controversy. It is sad irony that those who claim to work for eradicating caste from public life resort to the same tactics to voice their opposition to this award in to a ‘Brahmin’ scholar of ‘non-Brahmin’ Shivaji Maharaj!

This exchange of allegations and counter-allegations by warring factions has created a political storm in the state, at least for the present. Jitendra Awhad, the most cantankerous NCP leader was the first to voice his displeasure in rudest terms over this decision. The NCP, which then sought to distance from this controversy, later joined the bandwagon with its supremo Sharad Pawar, the powerful Maratha satrap, too accusing the state government of indulging in caste politics. Udayan Raje Bhosale, the direct descendent of Shivaji Maharaj, and a prominent NCP leader from Satara, too, jumped into the controversy with an advice to Maharashtra government to ‘put off’ the award function.

While the MNS chief Raj Thackeray slammed these leaders for indulging in dirty caste politics over this issue, noted personalites like Vishwas Patil, Avinash Dharmadhikari, G B Deglurkar came in support of Purandare. This war of words Tuesday degenerated into violent outbursts by the members of Sambhaji Brigade pelting stones and burning buses and attacking the office Maharashtra Minister of State for Home Ram Shinde at Ahmednagar.

The opposition argument:

The NCP, Congress and others are opposing the government decision on the basis that Purandare’s portrayal of Shivaji Maharaj was not based on historical facts and that he twisted them to suit his design of propagating Hindutva ideology and thus depicted Shivaji as protector of ‘cows and brahmins’ and a king who established the ‘Hindu Pad Patshahi’. Some leaders are also accusing him of writing history through a Brahaminical prism.

NCP supremo Sharad Pawar supported Awhad stating that though he respected Purandare and his scholarship he was not in agreement with his ‘derogatory writing’ on Shivaji. In his opinion Awhad had done nothing wrong in opposing the decision. Some days ago his nephew Ajit Pawar distanced him and his party stating that whatever Awhad had said was his ‘personal opinion’ and not the official party line. Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule too had praised Purandare a couple of months ago. Two days later, Sharad Pawar changed colours like a chameleon.

Justice P B Sawant, former Chairman of Press Council of India, and Dnyanapeeth award winner Bhalchandra Nemade, are two prominent public figures who toed the similar line in opposing the award to Purandare. While Sawant aired the views similar to those expressed by Pawar, Nemade felt that the portrayal of Shivaji in Purandare's work was not in keeping with history.

 Two activists of Sambhaji Brigade based in Pune Padmakar Kamble and Rahul Pokale, filed a PIL in the Bombay High Court challenging the government decision to bestow this highest civilian honor to Purandare. The petitioners have claimed that the government has not given proper thought while deciding the granting of state's highest honour.

Raj Thackeray’s retort:

MNS Chief Raj Thackeray retorted to Sharad Pawar’s observation accusing him of playing a ‘dirty politics’ over this issue. Raj pointed to the fact that Maharashtra is ruled by a Brahmin Chief Minister and this is what most disturbing factor for the Maratha satrap like Pawar who dominated the state politics on caste lines spearheading supremacy of the Marathas over other castes. Raj had threatened to create ‘tandava’ (havoc) in Maharashtra should anyone touch Purandare.

State Cultural Affairs Minister Vinod Tawade, however, appealed to all the concerns to keep restraint and do not indulge in such controversies. There was no issue involved in this controversy, he said. The government would go ahead with conferment of this award as scheduled, he said.