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Sonali Bendre finally breaks silence over reports of dating Raj Thackeray 20 years ago, says, 'Relationship is...'

Sonali Bendre finally breaks silence over reports of dating Raj Thackeray 20 years ago, says, 'Relationship is...'

India.com09-06-2025

Sonali Bendre finally breaks silence over reports of dating Raj Thackeray 20 years ago, says, 'Relationship is...'
Sonali Bendre, who captivated audiences with her admirable beauty and acting chops in 90s, has finally broke silence on her link-up rumours with Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray. The online chatter started when an old video of the two went viral, which led to the speculations that Raj Thackeray was allegedly having crush on her 20 years ago. Reacting to the buzz in an interview with ANI, Bendre said, 'Did he… I doubt it,' Firmly denying the rumours she clarified, 'I was talking to my sister who was right there.'
Addressing the gossip, The Hum Hum Saath Saath Hai actress added, 'I don't know. I mean, a lot of people… I think it's just not in very good taste when people talk about it like that. First of all, I mean, there are families involved and people involved in all of that.'
Explaining the decade-old association she had with his family, Sonali said, 'Other than the fact that my brother-in-law and my sister… my brother-in-law who's a cricketer and hence used to play cricket with Raj's cousin… Sister's husband and they always played together. Secondly, my sister's mother-in-law was the head of the department that taught us English literature in the (Ramnarain) Ruia College, which I'm from.'
She further revealed a personal family bond, stating, '…so they all knew each other. For me, the connection was that Sharmila, Raj's wife, her mother, and my Maasi were best friends. Her mother has held me for 10 days because you know how, oh, her, my mother's younger sister, Maasi. So when she delivered Raj, they all came laughing. Oh, her elder sister's baby. Let's go and see the baby. They've come to the hospital and seen me. So literally, that's the kind of connection.'
Sonali further added, 'I've always travelled around… It's not something that I know them beyond a point because I came into Maharashtra only once in two years during summer holidays or something like that.'
When asked whether she's interested in joining politics, the Sarfarosh actress firmly denied and said, 'No, not really. I think you need a lot of very thick skin for it, which I don't have… and I'm not politically correct… unfortunately.'
Meanwhile, Sonali Bendre has been a part of several hit movies including, Major Saab, Sarfarosh, Duplicate, Zakhm, Chori Chori, and Hum Saath Saath Hain, among others. She was last seen in the second season of the ZEE5 series The Broken News.

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But his passing was only the beginning of the tragedies that lay ahead in her life. According to The Print, Chetan left behind a will naming Priya and his two sons from his first marriage, Ketan and Vivek Anand, as joint owners of his Juhu bungalow. Though she owned her own apartment in Mumbai, Priya spent most of her time at Chetan's residence. On March 27, 2000, just three years after his passing, she was found dead at the same bungalow under mysterious circumstances. While many theories, including suicide, emerged, the post-mortem confirmed the cause of death as 'asphyxia due to strangulation'. The investigation soon led to Priya Rajvansh's maid, Mala Choudhary, who lived at the bungalow with her three children. During interrogation, she confessed to the crime and revealed that she committed it with the help of her cousin, Ashok Chinnaswami. But the probe didn't end there. It was reportedly discovered that Mala had an 'illicit relationship' with Ketan and had received Rs 4,000 from a 'close family member' to kill Priya. Apparently, the actor had been facing financial issues and was urging Ketan and Vivek to sell the property. Eventually, the investigation implicated the Anand brothers as well. According to a 2002 PTI report, police alleged that the brothers conspired to kill the actor to deprive her of her one-third share of the property. On July 31, 2002, a sessions court sentenced all four accused, including Ketan and Vivek, to life imprisonment. 'The pain is irreversible, but there is still some solace at hand. I still remember the day Chetan's sons, their maid Mala and his aide Ashok were sentenced to life imprisonment for killing my sister. You would not believe how a very close relation of the conspirators turned hostile towards them. The case reversed when the boy who had blown off the fuse on the day of the murder deposed for Priya. 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