Funny, Raj has another uncle trick up his sleeve: a cartoon weekly

Borrowing yet another trick from his estranged uncle and mentor Bal Thackeray, Maharashtra Navanirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray is planning to launch a Marathi cartoon weekly...

Borrowing yet another trick from his estranged uncle and mentor Bal Thackeray, Maharashtra Navanirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray is planning to launch a Marathi cartoon weekly and possibly a Marathi daily to propagate the party’s views.

According to sources close to Raj — who has been rather muted since a state government gag order following last month’s violence against north Indian migrants — the MNS chief and close aides are “supervising” plans and the weekly is expected to hit the stands in about six months.

“The plans are concrete and not too distant,” one Raj aide told The Indian Express, adding that the launch would have taken place earlier hadn’t it been for the violence.

The publication’s names have also been shortlisted and they aim to “spread the party’s word,” which, allege its leaders and cadres, was “twisted out of context” by the mainstream media, particularly Hindi and English language newspapers and TV channels.

Raj’s decision to launch his publications comes close on the heels of a move by the Shiv Sena to launch TV channels in Marathi and Hindi in the next six months, in the run-up to next year’s Assembly elections.

Raj’s move has strong parallels with that of Thackeray Sr., who launched his cartoon weekly Marmik — which also has articles accompanying the sketches — nearly half-a-century ago. Subsequently, he formed the Shiv Sena to champion the cause of Maharashtrians. Saamna, the Shiv Sena mouthpiece and daily Marathi newspaper, was launched in 1989.

Raj studied fine arts at Mumbai’s JJ School of Arts, his political cartoons were regularly published in Marmik and Saamna before he formed the MNS, and he has often spoken fondly about his love for sketching. Even his style is known to resemble that of his uncle, particularly the use of sharp angles.

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Raj’s plans are the latest in a state where prominent politicians are known to own or have stakes in the media. Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh controls Marathi daily Ekmat, Jayant Patil of the Peasants and Workers Party has a Marathi daily Krushiwal, Sharad Pawar’s family controls the Marathi daily Sakaal and a media group by the same name, while the BJP-Sangh Parivar have Tarun Bharat.

Political and media sources said the Sakaal group is due to launch a Marathi news channel called Saam next month while the Congress is considering a Marathi channel before the elections. Even Revenue Minister Narayan Rane, a former Shiv Sena leader, is in the process of launching a multi-edition Marathi daily Prahaar.