In a bid to take the gastrointestinal route to people's hearts, Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray on Monday announced the launch of an ethnic fast food chain branded "Shiv vada-pav" and pledged to make it a "global" phenomenon soon.

The branded vada-pav was introduce in a vada-pav conference, 'Vada-pav Sammelan', in Mumbai.

In the function 27 professional vada-pav makers from Mumbai took part in a competion held to find out the taste that could be used as a standard for the branded vada-pav to be launched at 100 outlets January 23 next year.

The function was sponsored by International burger giant McDonald's and soft drinks major CocaCola and judged by cookery experts who tested the vada-pav on various parameters like hygiene, preparation methods, quality of oil and consistency in taste.

"We have started this especially for the Marathi crowd and we want to prove that Marathi people are in every way competent," Shiv Sena President, Uddhav Thackeray.
The Shiv vada pav chain is expected to create job opportunities for Maharashtrian youth. The party chief Uddhav Thackeray expects Railway Minister Lalu Prasad to also pitch in.

"If he thinks good of Maharashtra then the food should not only be served in stations in Maharashtra but also all other railway stations," adds Uddhav Thackeray.