In the 1970's Babu Kishan designed, a Guduri (patch work) dress for his father's (PURNA DAS BAUL) travels & Tagori (Movie) All Bauls follow this lineage !!
PICTURES ARE WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS!!
Before the MID 1970's, no Bauls wore this dress, they all followed this dress because all Bauls always followed 'Purna Das Baul' and before him his father 'Nabani Das Khyapa Baul', there are no mistakes here.
There are so many sweet hearted village Bengali's that follow Baul, so innocent and we have loved them to follow us, this is to clear up some of the people who are changing the narrative and making up stories for a long time now. When the lineage holder is away, the younger people have not got a clue and if it looks exotic it must be real, duping westerners is not cool.
Babu has always encouraged and supported other, that is why he recorded, preserved and encouraged all to follow Baul. He just did not expect what is going on today, with a few ruining it for everybody making up lineages, stories and using every thing from his lineage but taking his name off.
Now: take note how Baul dress is changed as more read this blog, lol, Saffron Bauls, you have to be worthy to wear Saffron dress, now we have Baul singers who are actors or singers wearing saffron because they have to wear something to pose as a Baul?
BABU KISHAN'S DESIGN - for film and for his Dad's travels around the world. Purna Das Baul had been traveling world wide since the 1950's and all over India as a state Singer for Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi. Nabani Das Khyapa Baul was a state singer for Nehru during the freedom Movement. It works like this, this lineage are the pied pipers of gathering people through their song and Vaishnava Baul Kirtan.
Stalking the Footprint: The Theft of Authentic Baul Historical ROOTS, preserved for over 60 years by KD Babu Kishan
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2012/04/kd-babukishan-osho-bauls-of-bengal.html
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2022/07/kichhu-din-mone-mone-by-nabani-das.html
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2021/08/bob-dylan-and-babukishan-why-do-people.html
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2022/04/the-evening-concluded-with-presentation_3.htmlhttps://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2011/10/allen-ginsberg-his-baul-guru-nabani-das.html
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2025/06/baul-fusion-creator-kd-babu-kishan-with.html
The Unsung Success of Babu Kishan's "Hanuman Chalisa"
Babu Kishan Music has an astounding 3 billion listens on YouTube with T-Series for his iconic "Hanuman Chalisa." This entire Hanuman album was not only produced by Babu Kishan, he also composed the music for it, wrote the lyrics for the other Hanuman Bhajans on the album, and personally funded its recording. This is the first ever Hanuman Chalisa commercialy recorded and it is played in all temples of India. Music Composed, arranged, paid for and concieve by KD Babu Kishan in the early 1980s.
Tragically, Babu Kishan's master
recording of the "Hanuman Chalisa" was stolen from his Juhu studio. This
theft has a significant history, leading to millions in profits for
record companies, none of which ever reached KD Babu Kishan.
This groundbreaking "Hanuman Chalisa," recorded in the 1980s, was the first ever recorded version and became a staple in temples across India. It features the powerful vocals of the late Hari Om Sharan. Beyond the T-Series numbers, it has accumulated 15 million listens with another company, 20 million on a different site, and millions more across various other platforms, with all these rights sold to different music companies in Bombay.
Babu Kishan's "Hanuman Chalisa" is, in fact, the most listened-to devotional song in Indian history, sung by his dear late friend, Hari Om Sharan. It stands as the first-ever Hanuman Chalisa recording, produced, and music-composed entirely by Babu Kishan.
Billions of people have listened to Babu Kishan's music without ever knowing it's his life's work. Even today, 80% of the recorded Baul music attributed to his father, Purna Das Baul, was produced and composed by KD Babu Kishan, also known as Krishnendu Das.
Shadow Footprinting: The systematic physical retracing of a primary source's historical footprint to absorb its institutional prestige and obscure the original creator 'first and Lasts' of indigenous Baul."Shadow Footprinting"
Shadow Footprinting & Identity Cannibalization:
The systematic ingestion of a primary lineage holder’s lived experiences, personal relationships, academic breakthroughs, and oral body-science tattva ("that-ness," "truth," "reality," or the "essential nature" of things that are Baul), songs, tune, lyrics Baul Kirtan the 108 tattvas only categorized by KD Babu Kishan.
Shadow Footprinting (the method) with Spectral Theft or Archival Squatting (the act) creates an immediate, undeniable diagnosis of Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP) fraud that cuts straight through marketing spin of 'erasing indigenous Baul by those who are systemically replacing us as cosplyer Baul Artists and self-title Baul Masters'. The indigenous intellectual shadow footprinting of this one and only pioneering indigenous Baul, the shadow footprinting of all their 'firsts and lasts' of historical Baul roots, their songs, dress, style, instruments, where they went, who they met and what they have created as a modern template for the indigenous Bauls to survive the modern world.
Babu Kishan has recorded, preserved the entire lineage there is no new things to preserve no new "firsts and lasts" especially as claimed by the cosplayer fake Bauls who are busy shadow printing and exagerating their who fake lineage. Babu Kishan has written about Baul since the 1970's and is the author 3 previous books, the last one sponsored by George Harrison who had a book release party for Krishnendu Das "Babu Kishan' in LA California in 1985 or 1986 it is written her in this blog, however, after decades I can't remember the exact date.
The lived lives of (Purna Das Baul, Nabani Das Khyapa Baul, Manju Das, Brajabala Dasi, Radharani Dasi and Krishnendu Das Baul (Babu Kishan's) have been copied and 'shadow footprinted' a remaking, of their actual identity, their 'lived lives' have been retraced, tracked and re-acted out in a 'replacing them by erasing them'. They either were stupid or thought they were clever and nobody would every know, let alone say a word? I have all the reciepts.
They have been shadow footprined and turned into a 'commercial Baul brand' that feeds off the original creator or lineage of indigenous Baul, while attempting to erase their existence, and now represented as a social media influencer, cosplayer Baul.
For decades this has been going on, the cosplayer's have made a career of pretending to be Baul, by stripping the roots of this lineage, purposely erasing us by replacing us, through shadow footprinting this one and only lineage? Now they say they are the replacement for Purna Das Baul a new Purna Das Baul so that they can steal his huge irreplaceable legacy. Impossible and now that we have caught on we will not tolerate this kind of intellectual indigenous fraud.
Shadow Footprinting & Archival Squatting:
The hostile strategy of occupying the exact institutional coordinates, university archives, sacred ashrams, and international performance venues where the true lineage made history—effectively "squatting" on established cultural authority to deceive audiences into mistaking a modern re-enactment for legitimate heritage.
Shadow Footprinting & Spectral Theft:
"The deliberate copying of the historical roots, physical locations, and ancestral legacy of a primary source, alongside the philosophical and colonial impact of this deception—rebranding, remaking, tracking all of this lineage, "firsts and lasts" in Baul History, and replacing the authentic roots of Baul with performative cosplay acting.
Shadow Footprinting & Chronological Hijacking:
The exploitation of public memory loss and modern search engine algorithms by flooding the digital landscape with recent, high-volume youtube media that co-opts original terminology (Historical Baul, Roots of Baul)—overwriting older historical records to make the synthetic copy appear as the sole surviving authority.
Claiming you are the next Purna Das Baul or Baul Ambassador both indigenous one and only in Baul history. Claiming you are Baul, your Guru was Baul and that you actually are a lineage Baul when 100% it can be proven you are not. The indigenous intellectual property theft can be proven.
The modern template of Baul that Babu Kishan created was only for indigenous Bauls, his ancestors who were poor and marginalized, however the tricker random middle class raised people out of the blue started pretending, cosplaying they were Baul while looting, poaching this lineage songs, dress, style, dance, insturments, shadow footprinting exactly where they went and then making claims they were the legendary Baul? These were not villagers of Birbhum, they were from someone other place in India and outside of India naming themselves Western Bauls?
Reclaiming the Historical Roots of Mystic Baul: A Declaration Against Cultural FraudFor over two decades, we have documented a systematic pattern of cultural theft and historical revisionism directed against the hereditary lineage of Purna Das Baul. External performers with no legitimate initiation (diksha) have copied this family’s music, attire, instrumentation, dance, and lived biographies—shadowing their footprints to fabricate false lineages and profit from the "Guru business."
The True Lineage (Parampara)
13 Generations of Preservation: This lineage represents over thirteen generations of unbroken hereditary transmission, preserving Baul tradition through periods of war, famine, and religious persecution by orthodox authorities who burned their sacred texts and decried their Tantric roots.
The Root in Birbhum: Authentic Baul is rooted in the soil of Birbhum, West Bengal. Historically, there were no "Bauls" in Bangladesh, nor was the tradition historically synonymous with regional Fakir or Sufi sects until Purna Das Baul popularized the art form globally in the 1960s and 1970s.
The Legacy of Nabani Das Khyapa Baul: Displaced refugees who arrived in West Bengal during Partition and the 1971 war frequently imitated the style, instruments, and presence of Nabani Das Khyapa Baul—the sole Baul practitioner initiated by Bamakhepa at the Tarapith cremation grounds.
Indigenous Rights and the Mechanics of Misappropriation There is a fundamental difference between cultural appreciation and cultural misappropriation. According to United Nations standards on indigenous rights, the systematic poaching, falsification, and commercial exploitation of an indigenous group's heritage constitutes indigenous fraud and erodes the right to self-determination.
The core teachings of this lineage were historically protected through Sandhya Bhasha—an esoteric twilight language blending oral Sanskrit, Braja Bhasha, and Birbhum Bengali. Commercialization and academic reductionism have severely distorted these teachings, misinterpreting concepts like Vayu Tula and incorrectly labeling Baul as an illiterate, Buddhist Sahajiya, or purely syncretic movement.
Baul is fundamentally Atma Tattva (knowledge of the Self) and Atma Lila (the divine expression of the Soul). The upcoming three-volume trilogy stands as a formal reclamation of the authentic, pioneering, and singular historical roots of Mystic Baul.
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2026/08/formal-notice-of-intellectual-property.html
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2026/08/roots-of-vaishnava-baul-sahaja-sahajiya.html
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2026/08/academia-vaishnava-sahajiya-baul.html
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2026/09/you-can-not-reclaim-what-you-do-not-own.html
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2025/02/indigenous-identity-theft-indigenous.html
A True Pioneer of World Music and Cultural Diplomacy
Early Global Footprint: Babu Kishan was representing Indian culture across the US and Europe as far back as 1971, long before the modern diaspora arrived abroad.
Pioneering Fusion: He created the first authentic Indian Fusion and Baul Fusion music. He toured the US playing 40 concerts with Bob Dylan & the Band, jamming with The Rolling Stones, Tom Petty, George Harrison, Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys, and Miles Davis and many others.
Bollywood Legend: He served as an assistant to his Bollywood Music Guru, R.D. Burman, for 13 years. He helped establish major record labels in Mumbai, categorized India's vast folk music catalog for industry producers, and was among the original architects who helped coin and shape "Bollywood."
He is not a self-titled Baul he is the Roots of Historical Baul and he is not a self-titled music composer, he is educated in Indian Music since birth and has been qualified both academically and through the highest Music Composers in Indian History who all signed for him and let him compose Music for them, RD Burman, Ravindra Jain, Naushad Ali, Laxmikant Pyrelal and Bapi Lahari. In Babu Kishans music compositions he has employed the top of Indian's talent as musicians.
Linguistic & Classical Mastery: A high-level oral and classical Sanskritist, he speaks and has recorded in an extraordinary range of Indian languages. He was the first artist to record the Hanuman Chalisa for modern commercial releases.
Official State Representation: For over 40 years, he served as an official Cultural Representative of India globally under the Sangeet Natak Akademi (Indian National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama) and the ICCR (Indian Council for Cultural Relations).
The Composer Behind the Legend
Beyond his work as an independent artist, (Babu Kishan tknown professionally in Bombay) and Krishnendu Das in Calcutta film and Music Industry )composed over 80% of the music for his father, Baul Samrat Purna Das Baul. Those recordings became the most critically and commercially successful albums of Purna Das Baul's career and they were copied and re-recorded with no credit by pretenian, cosplayers, called the fake it til you make it Bauls that arrived as refugees from Bangladesh. This is part of the reclamation of Baul, correcting these wrongs that haved done with the looting, poaching of Baul and who really is Baul.
You cannot replace a lifetime of primary achievement by creating a fake IMDb profile, posing as an academic, or teaching distorted fabrications about a sacred indigenous science. The historical record is permanent, verifiable, and absolute.
Archival Summary & Credentials
Titles & Honors: Pandit, Master of Indian Music, Award-Winning Music Composer & Producer.
Early Recognition: Awarded "Youngest Music and Film Director in Bengal" at age 11 (1978); widely decorated across Bengal through the 1980s; received the Bollywood Buddy Lifetime Achievement Award (2007) for his contributions to Indian Cinema.
Instrumental & Vocal Mastery: Multi-instrumentalist playing over 15 traditional and modern instruments; Master of Indian Classical, Baul, Bhajan, Kirtan, Baul-Kirtan, and East-West Fusion.
Discography & Filmography: Released over 1,000 albums, produced over 60 albums, and composed more than 150 film scores for Indian Cinema.
Saying you are the next 'Purna Das Baul' is Shadow foot printing and indigenous theft. Baul Samrat Pandit (Padma Shree) Purna Chandra Das Baul is one of the most highly awarded Singers of India he is a Baul pioneer, nobody in this world would know about Baul without Nabani Das Khyapa Baul, Purna Das Baul and their eldest Krishnendu Das Baul (Babu Kishan) this one and only indigenous pioneering with all the 'first and last' regarding Baul can not be claimed or replaced, Baul was complete decades ago.
Purna Das Baul was awarded a Padma Shree and many other awards historically winning awards from a list of Presidents and PM, Minister over a lifetime. He is the first and last only Legendary Baul along with Nabani Das Khyapa Baul, and regarding Baul women only Braja Dasi, Radharani Dasi, and Manju Das- the wife of Purna Das Baul who is he ONLY Baul women ever to travel the world since the late 1960s to 2010 when she passed away.
Making, stealing these women's place in Baul History is 'shadow FOOT-printing' this lineage, using Legendary Women is a gross injustice and lie to this indigenous roots of Baul. Purna Das Baul is 93 years old a historical figure on all levels within India. His ancestors the ones who preserved, held, giving up their lives life and life to do seva, social work, teaching, feeding, healin the villagers of Birbhum West Bengal the birth place soil and soul of Baul (The Vaishnava Sahajiya (Gosia Chandra) Das Baul and Dasi. will be rolling in the soil if we do not tell the truth. Truth is the first tenant of Baul.
Self-titling that you are now the Baul Ambassador, when this title is a first and last only known and copied from Babu Kishan's writings by stalking all the wording that belong only to this singular Baul pioneering parampara is Shadow Footprinting & Identity Cannibalization along with Archival Squatting. A title given only to Purna Das Baul, Manju Das and KD Babu Kishan who were the only Baul representatives of India through the ICCR. Babu Kishan had all the contacts for decades. This may not mean anything to anybody, however, it is a serious insideous shadow printing & Archival Squatting
It should be know that the song (poetry) & tune for #KichhuDinMoneMone is a song from this lineage, it is the Poetry of Nabani Das Khyapa Baul. It was recorded first by Purna Das Baul at one of India's first record companies Hindustan Records under Pankaj Mallick and Rai Chand Boral. It
was copied right off of Babu Kishan's youtube channel and re-recored
without permission by a female cosplaying Baul who created a fake
lineage and fake Baul Guru. I won't use any names until the books are
released, however, these people are shadow footprinting this lineage
from day one in every way. They will be exposed, you in the west think
they are authentic Baul Artists and a Baul Master, they are self-titled
Baul Masters who have poached the life out of Lineage Baul. We are
exploring legal action.
Before Nabani Das Khyapa Baul no Bauls, used Ektara, Baya (hand drum) and Nupoor (ankle Bells). Yet, this is what is presented by someone who has made up a lineage, Babu Kishan knew all the people who followed by from the 1960's, the truth must be told. Too many westerners do not know the language and follow who looks exotic, if it looks exotic run in the other direction, the blind leading the blind.
When you see anybody, any Baul using these instruments they are following Nabani Das Baul. It does not matter who they are and guaranteed they are singing the songs from this Lineage or many sing Bengali folk songs, not even Baul songs.
If you see any Baul use a dotara they are following Radharani's husband Gopal Das Baul, he is the first to use the Dotara in the 1940's he was the son of the Pujari of the Ekachakra Mandir in Ekachakra and disciple of Nabani who married him to his daughter Radharani.
This lineage sings Baul songs and Baul Kirtan and all Vaishnava Baul songs and kirtan come from this Lineage and have always come from this Lineage. This is the Lineage of Nityananda of Ekachakra, Nabani and Purna Das Baul all come from Ekachakra Birbhum.
There is not other Lineage.
BABU KISHAN ALSO, INTRODUCED THIS STYLE IN A BENGALI FILM CALLED TAGORI AND HE MADE A NEW DESIGN FOR WOMEN BAUL WORN BY SANDHI ROY IN TAGORI. NOW BAUL WOMEN COPY THAT STYLE TOO.
TOGORI IS A STORY ON HIS AUNT RADHARANI. TODAY'S WOMEN BAULS COPY THE STYLE FROM THE MOVIE TAGORI (1980) ISH.
HISTORICAL.
Not only following Nabani Das style Ektara Baya and Nupoor (ankle bells) but known for following Nabani's dance too.
He is wearing Babu Kishan style Dress???
A follower of this lineage, note: there is no other Lineage.
RIP, not many know the story but Babu Kishan helped this family lots. STOP making up stories. Names and stories will be mentioned in Babu Kishan's new book.