Sule said that Kaka, as she fondly addressed Thackeray, was a regular visitor to their residence in Mumbai. “We too often visited their residence,” she said. On the criticisms made by Thackeray through his speeches or in Sena mouthpiece Saamana against her father, Sule said, “I never sought any justification from him for the criticism. My father also took them in his stride. After all, these were political attacks... At personal level, our families shared a close bond.” She said Balasaheb referred to her father as Sharadbabu.

Paying her condolences, Sule said, “Maharashtra has suffered an irreparable loss in the death of the most firebrand leader. He was broad-minded, liberal and a leader who had spoken freely what he thought was right.”

Walking down the memory lane, Sule said, “It was fun to interact with him. He was such a jocular person. He could speak on a range of subjects which gave an insight into this knowledgeable mind. And you could listen him for hours.”

Sule said over five years ago she and her father had gone to the Thackeray residence. “When we reached there, Balasaheb inquisitively inquired from my father about his (Balasaheb’s) girlfriend. For a moment I was taken aback. Balasaheb quickly reacted that he was looking for his cigar, his pipe,” she said. The Sena chief, said Sule, never held himself back.

“He liked his cigar, his wine and warm beer. And he said this openly. Balasaheb never pretended that he never liked these things. He was straightforward and pointblank...”

Sule said four-five months ago, she went to Balasaheb to inquire about his health. “I told him that I had come to see him only for 10 minutes. And the moment I said this, he admonished me in typical Thackeray style — Who are you to decide? And we got down to discussing different things. When I checked, it was two hours and there was no sign of an end to our discussion.” Sule said Balasaheb had clicked her pictures then and sent her the copies. “It was a great gesture...”