Actress Sonali Bendre has finally ender her silence on the viral video featuring Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, that had become the talk of the town in February this year. She also, for the first time, addressed the questions raised on her close bond with Thackeray, and stated how they were "not in a very good taste".
During an interaction with ANI, Sonali was asked if Thackeray had a crush on her back in the 90s and if she was aware of it. "Did he? I doubt it, but yeah," the actress replied, visibly agitated.
She was then asked about their viral video from February this year, and responding to it, Sonali clarified that she was actually gesturing to her sister and not Thackeray, "Honestly, when I spoke and I called in the video, I was talking to my sister, who was right there. Not even behind him, but I was telling my sister to come. That’s the thing about this," she shared.
Speaking on the rumours, she went on to say, "It’s just not in a very good taste when people talk about it. First of all, there are families and people involved. Secondly, something that till date I’ve never even bothered telling this, but my brother-in-law, who is a cricketer, used to play cricket with Raj’s cousin. Moreover, my sister’s mother-in-law was the Head of Department in literature at the college I am from. She knows Raj because of his father, they all know each other somehow."
Explaining how she knew Thackeray, Sonali stated, "For me, the connection was Sharmila, Raj’s wife. Her mother and my Maasi were best friends. Her mother has held me when I was 10-days-old. They’ve come to the hospital and seen me. So literally, that’s the kind of connection I had with them."
"I have always travelled around, so it’s not like I know them beyond a point, because I came to Maharashtra only once in two years during summer holidays or something like that," she added.
Sonali and Thackeray reportedly met in February as they attended the Marathi Bhasha Gaurav Din in Mumbai.
