Bal Thackeray
Politician
Indian political figure and ethnocentric Marathi leader who became known as the founder of Western India's conservative Shiv Sena party.
Before pursuing a career in politics, he worked in Mumbai as a cartoonist for The Free Press Journal. He later established a political publication called Marmik.
The Indian government accused his Hindu-based Shiv Sena party of encouraging anti-Muslim violence during the Mumbai riots of the early 1990s.
His marriage to Meena Thackeray produced three sons. He was born in Pune, Maharashtra as the son of political activist Keshav Thackeray.
In an Asiaweek magazine interview, he made extremely controversial public remarks in praise of intheir Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.