Nashik: The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Wednesday used Artificial Intelligence (AI) to recreate a voice resembling that of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray, in an effort to shore up the party’s prospects after the assembly polls debacle.
About The AI Speech
While the speech attacked the BJP and the present Shiv Sena under Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule called it a “childish stunt”.
The nearly 13-minute speech, with a booming voice resembling that of Bal Thackeray, began with his trademark opening line “Jamlelya majhya tamam Hindu bandhavanu, baghinino ani matano” (greetings to my Hindu brothers, sisters and mothers who have gathered here). It was relayed at a Sena (UBT) gathering in Nashik in north Maharashtra.
The speech tried to recreate, according to the Sena (UBT), what Bal Thackeray would have said had he been alive. It sounded more like Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray’s attacks on the BJP and Shinde’s party during the Lok Sabha and state assembly polls. The AI speech also tried to capture the mannerisms and tone of Bal Thackeray, who was a powerful orator.
This is the first time the Sena founder’s speech was used by his son’s party to train guns on its opponents. The party could use this strategy in future rallies as Uddhav Thackeray faces the most challenging phase of his political career so far. The Sena (UBT) is also gearing up for the high-stakes Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, which might be held this year.
The AI move comes when the Sena (UBT) is being mocked by its opponents with old videos of Bal Thackeray castigating the Congress.
Sena (UBT), Congress and Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) are constituents of the opposition bloc Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which performed disastrously in last year’s assembly polls by bagging only 46 of the 288 seats. Sena (UBT) got only 20 seats compared to the rival Shiv Sena’s 57.
Maharashtra BJP Chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule Condemns The AI Play
State BJP chief Bawankule condemned AI play by Sena (UBT). In a post on X, Bawankule called it a “childish stunt”.
“Disgrace! When no one is listening to their voice, only a group like UBT could resort to the childish act of making their points heard in the voice of revered Shiv Sena chief Balasaheb Thackeray,” Bawankule said.
He listed a series of actions by Sena (UBT) that, in his view, ran counter to Bal Thackeray’s ideology.
“I am certain that today, those who called Balasaheb ‘Janab’ named gardens after Tipu Sultan, embraced Rahul Gandhi who insults Veer V D Savarkar, voted against the Waqf board, sat beside those who opposed Ram Mandir…
“… supported Article 370 sympathisers, extorted money through the likes of Waze, made deals even in dead body bags, committed scams during COVID, and filled their coffers by looting Marathi households – Balasaheb would have kicked them out,” Bawankule said in his post.
He added, “The ideals Balasaheb spent his life fighting for – at the very least, do not use his voice against those ideals. You have betrayed his thoughts. At least do not misuse his voice after his death.”
(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ’s editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
