Shivaji Park (Template:Lang-mr) is the largest park in Mumbai. It is situated in the Dadar area of Mumbai. Like the Azad Maidan and August Kranti Maidan (formerly Gowalia Tank Grounds), it is of historical and cultural value because of the political and social gatherings it has witnessed, both in pre- and post-independence Mumbai.

The ground is flanked around its edge by a katta, which is a popular hangout for young and old Mumbaikars alike. On a typical weekend evening it is difficult to get a place to sit on the katta.

The walkway around the perimeter is crowded with people taking walks. The inner circumference of the park is 1.17 kilometres (0.73 mi).

112,937 square metres (27.907 acres) in area, the ground is busy with young cricket players. Various attractions are spread over the grounds, including the Samarth Vyayam Mandir (gymnasium), Shivaji Park Nagarik Sangh (established in 1947), Shivaji Park Gymkhana (club), Children's Park, Nana-Nani Park (Grandpa and Grandma park), Scout's Pavilion (which is a popular venue for marriages), Udhyan Ganesh Mandir (Ganesh temple), The Bengal Club with a small Kali shrine and a library. The walkway is lined with huge rain trees.

The most prominent entrance to the park is the one on the east side, intended only for pedestrians. A bust of Meenatai Thackeray, late wife of Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackeray, has been placed at this entrance. Previously a bust of Ram Ganesh Gadkari was present at the same spot. Bal Thackeray himself was cremated here. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

Shivaji Park is the largest park in Mumbai. It is situated in the Dadar area of Mumbai. Like the Azad Maidan and August Kranti Maidan (formerly Gowalia Tank Grounds), it is of historical and cultural value because of the political and social gatherings it has witnessed, both in pre- and post-independence Mumbai. The park is named after the legendary 17th century warrior king of the region, Chhatrapati Shivaji. The park was created in 1925 by the Bombay Municipal Corporation, in the days of the British Raj. Through the name, the British authorities acknowledged Shivaji and the reverence his name commanded amongst the local Marathi population. Shivaji had foreseen the ulterior motives of the British East India Company and challenged the growing British presence in India.

The grand statue of Shivaji in the park is one of the very few statues in which Shivaji is depicted without having drawn out his sword. Instead, Shivaji is shown simply leading the way with his arm outstretched. Created in 1966 using donations from the local population, the statue is a rare example of the pacifist policies of the then state government of Maharashtra. It was considered a sensitive issue by the government to let this statue depict the usual confrontational posture of Shivaji, who had fought many battles against the Mughal Empire.

The ground is flanked around its edge by a katta, which is a popular hangout for young and old Mumbaikars alike. On a typical weekend evening it is difficult to get a place to sit on the katta.

Various attractions are spread over the grounds, including the Samarth Vyayam Mandir (gymnasium), Shivaji Park Nagarik Sangh (established in 1947), Shivaji Park Gymkhana (club), Children’s Park, Nana-Nani Park (Grandpa and Grandma park), Scout’s Pavilion (which is a popular venue for marriages), Udhyan Ganesh Mandir (Ganesh temple), The Bengal Club and a library. The walkway is lined with huge rain trees.Shivaji Park is famous amongst cricket players.

The most prominent entrance to the park is the one on the east side, intended only for pedestrians. A bust of Meenatai Thackeray, late wife of Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackeray, has been placed at this entrance. Previously a bust of Ram Ganesh Gadkari was present at the same spot.

The park is named after the legendary 17th century warrior king of the region, Chhatrapati Shivaji. The park was created in 1925 by the Bombay Municipal Corporation, in the days of the British Raj. Through the name, the British authorities acknowledged Shivaji and the reverence his name commanded amongst the local Marathi population.

Besides being a venue for gatherings of freedom fighters in British India, after independence in 1947 Shivaji Park was the focal point of the Samyukta Maharashtra Chalval (the struggle for a consolidated Maharashtra) that led to the present Maharashtra state being formed in 1960. During this period, the legendary writer, journalist, playwright, poet and social leader Acharya Prahlad Keshav Atre led this movement, addressing crowds of lakhs at this ground, earning him the title of "Lord of Shivaji Park". On India's victory over Pakistan in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, then prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri and defence minister Yashwantrao Chavan addressed a Vijaysabha (victory gathering) here. Shivaji Park has been integral to the political gatherings of the local party Shiv Sena, and has witnessed numerous other political rallies.

The grand statue of Shivaji in the park is one of the very few statues in which Shivaji is depicted without having drawn out his sword. Instead, Shivaji is shown simply leading the way with his arm outstretched. Created in 1966 using donations from the local population, the statue is a rare example of the pacifist policies of the then state government of Maharashtra. It was considered a sensitive issue by the government to let this statue depict the usual confrontational posture of Shivaji, who had fought many battles against the Mughal Empire.

In modern times Shivaji Park is seen as the cradle of Indian cricket, with its innumerable cricket academies like those of the late Anna Vaidya and Ramakant Acharekar, which produced several international cricketers for India. Some famous names who trained here are Eknath Solkar, Sunil Gavaskar, Sandeep Patil, Sachin Tendulkar, Ajit Agarkar, Pravin Amre, Vinod Kambli and Sanjay Manjrekar.

Cricket may be the reason Shivaji Park is famous for, but few of the city's budding talent practice their football here including teams like Adarsh FC, Dadar XI,Dias united Sports Club, Kenkre, R D united, BEARS FC, VAKYPPS FC etc. Few players have extra ordinary talent which indeed could make a differance in football like Abhishek Patil(TOTO),Nisarg Gala Prasanna Soparkar(played for mumbai) and Shardul Rajwade(played for mumbai). Shivaji Park is the essential part of all the players who play there.Players like Nisarg Gala who played for mumba, maharashtra(2 times)and india and Aditya Gaikar have extraordinary talents.

The area surrounding the park has many buildings dating back to the mid-1900s, and the Shivaji Park Residential Zone is some of the most sought-after and expensive real estate in Mumbai.^{[citation needed]} This predominantely Marathi neighbourhood is home to many well-known personalities from literature, theatre, commerce and sports. Some of its prominent residents include Manohar Joshi, Raj Thackeray, Anup Jalota, Milind Soman as well as the incumbent Mayor of Mumbai. Others such as Ajit Agarkar were born and raised here.Now This ground also remembered by Name of Late Bal Thackeray as Upon his death, he was accorded a state funeral with over 2,000,000 mourners on This Historical Place.

An unprecedented multitude of supporters, celebrities, industrialists and common men converged upon the city’s Shivaji Park to bid an emotional adieu to Shiv Sena supremo Bal Keshav Thackeray, who was cremated here on Sunday with full state honours.

The mortal remains of the 86-year-old patriarch — a firebrand mascot of Hindu nationalism and Marathi pride — were consigned to the flames with a 21-gun salute preceding the final stages of his funeral.

The venue, located in the heart of the city, was chosen as it was the place where Mr. Thackeray had launched the Shiv Sena in 1966, thus commencing a stormy 46-year-old journey into politics.

“Between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m., there were around four to five lakh people at Shivaji Park,” Niket Kaushik, Additional Commissioner of Police, told The Hindu.

Earlier in the day, Mr. Thackeray’s funeral procession, that was scheduled to leave ‘Matoshree’ in suburban Bandra at 7 a.m., was delayed as roads around the Thackeray residence were clogged with lakhs of fervent supporters who blocked the route of the funeral procession.

Mr. Thackeray’s body was finally brought out of his house a little after 9 a.m. in a hearse adorned with flowers. His youngest son, Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray, broke down as his father’s body was being put on the truck.

His estranged cousin, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, walked alongside the hearse till Mahim causeway.

Apart from a grief-stricken Uddhav Thackeray, who was compelled to plead to the restive crowds to show restraint, his wife Rashmi and son Aditya Thackeray stood beside Mr. Thackeray’s body on the hearse that also bore Sena-alliance leaders, Ramdas Athawale of the Republican Party of India (A) and senior BJP leader Vinod Tawde.

Cries of ‘Parat ya parat ya Balasaheb parat ya (Balasaheb come back) rent the air as frenzied Sainiks crowded near the cortege, slowing down its movement. The procession reached Shivaji Park at around 4:30 in the evening as a host of dignitaries gathered to pay their last respects to Mr. Thackeray.

A stellar cast of politicians, Bollywood movie stars and industry titans attended the funeral.

Politicians, including the top brass of the Bharatiya Janata Party (a political ally of the Sena in the State) that included leaders like L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Nitin Gadkari, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan and Gopinath Munde were present on the occasion.

Among the ruling coalition leaders, Mr. Thackeray’s close friend, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, senior NCP leaders Praful Patel and Chhagan Bhujbal, State Home Minister R.R. Patil were present, along with virtually every top State leader.

Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Nana Patekar and Madhur Bhandarkar were among the prominent Bollywood celebrities present.

The final rites were performed by Mr. Uddhav Thackeray and an emotionally overwhelmed Raj Thackeray.

Shivaji Park resounded with cries of “Balasaheb amar rahe” (long live Balasaheb) as a grim-looking Mr. Uddhav Thackeray lit the pyre.

All through the day, a veritable swarm of Sena supporters from all parts of Maharashtra disregarding personal privation poured onto the streets leading from “Matoshree” — the Thackeray home in suburban Bandra — to Shivaji Park in order to catch final glimpses of Mr. Thackeray’s journey.

Despite no formal call being given, a total shutdown, prompted by fear of violence on the part of Sena cadres, prevailed in many parts of the city and its outer limits including Navi Mumbai and Thane in the wake of Mr. Thackeray’s death.

Markets, that began downing shutters since Saturday evening, were shut to the last shop in Sena strongholds. Trains were the only visible mode of functioning public transport as taxis and auto rickshaws completely stopped plying the roads.

Hoardings hailing the former founder of the Shiv Sena as ‘The Last Hindu’ and a ‘Saffron Storm’ dotted the cityscape throughout the Sena strongholds of Dadar and Bandra.

• Shivaji Park Residential Zone

• Satellite view of Shivaji Park
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