Thackeray family has been the unofficial first family of Mumbai, if not Maharashtra.
Bal Keshav Thackeray was the most prominent face of Thackeray family in Maharashtra. A cartoonist by profession, Thackeray formed ‘Shiv Sena' that espoused the cause of Maratha interest and Marathi language.
After a long struggle, Thackeray's Shiv Sena, in alliance with BJP, succeeded in snatching power from Congress in 1995. The Shiv Sena-BJP government ruled Maharashtra from 1995-99.
Bal Thackeray was one of those controversial politicians of India who were blamed for fanning communal and regional chauvinism in Maharashtra. But he was a force to reckon with in Maharashtra politics.
The story of Thackerays began with the arrival of Keshav Sitaram Thackeray to Bombay. Keshav Sitaram Thackeray was also known as Prabodhankar Thackeray because of his articles in his fortnightly magazine named Prabodhan.
The Thackerays played a vital role in the Samyukta Maharashtra movement. Leading from the front was Keshav Thackeray, one of the five prominent leaders of the movement.
Bal Thackeray, at the time, worked as a cartoonist in the Mumbai daily newspaper ‘Free Press Journal'. He also contributed to Marathi publications, including Navyug, under the pseudonym Mavla. Bal Thackeray supported the demands made by the samiti and attacked the Congress through his cartoons.
Bal Thackeray lost his wife Meena to a heart attack in September 1996. His eldest son Bindumadhav died in a road accident on 20 April 1996.
His other son,Jaidev, had parted ways with Thackeray in 1995 over ideological differences when the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance was in power. He has kept himself away from politics all these years. Jaidev divorced his wife Smitha Thackeray who is a renowned personality in Maharashtra and owns a TV production house.
Bal Thackeray's nephew Raj Thackeray used to be his lieutenant not very long ago but he parted ways with the first family when the senior Thackeray decided to anoint his son Uddhav as the second-in-command of Shiv Sena. Today, Raj is heading his own party – Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), a more rabid version of Shiv Sena.
Uddhav Thackeray, Bal Thackeray's youngest son, has taken over as the president of Shiv Sena after the demise of Bal Thackeray.
