In 1984 New York Times had hit an article on a 'Baul' from Bengal. It carried an article describing famous Purna Das Baul as India’s Bob Dylan! By then Purna Das had successfully taken the rustic folk songs of Bengal to a global audience, performing on stage with famous Western musicians. If we consider Lalon Fakir as the first Baul King, then Purna Das was the one who popularized this genre of music on an international platform. He even added a western fusion element to it that was widely accepted by global musicians. Literally, Purna Das Baul turned into a cult figure during his eight-months tour of the US in 1965.

Purna Das shared stage with international music stars like Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Paul Robeson, Mick Jagger, Tina Turner and many more on these tours. He played along with Bob Marley, Gordon Lightfoot and Mahalia Jackson. Purna Das thus brought in a new twist to the indigenous baul gaan, making it akin to Western Jazz. Along with sons Krishnendu, Subhendu and Dibyendu, he wished to unite an array of top music icons with Bengal’s 'Baul' music as the central focus. What resulted so many years back was an Indo-Western fusion taking Baul songs to a different level. 

Purna Das was the one who popularized this genre of music on an international platform. He even added a western fusion element to it that was widely accepted by global musicians.