Gujarati people (Gujarati: ગુજરાતી લોકો Gujǎrātī loko?), or Gujaratis are an ethnic group that is traditionally Gujarati-speaking and can trace their ancestry to the state of Gujarat in western India. Famous Gujaratis include Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Mohandas Gandhi, Dhirubhai Ambani, Swami Dayananda Saraswati and Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

The Gujarati people live in the western part of the Indian subcontinent, in the state of Gujarat. Gujaratis have rich cultural heritage. Many Gujaratis inhabit the state of Maharashtra of India and the territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Additionally, the Gujarati language has been adopted by communities such as the Kacchis, who use it as their literary language, and the Parsis, who had made the Gujarat region of the Indian subcontinent their home. Gandhinagar is the capital city of Gujarat. Gujaratis mainly follow Hindu religion (89.1%), apart from others including Muslims that constitute 9.1%, Jains 1.0%, Sikhs, and Christians. There are many Gujaratis living in various cities in South Indian states viz. Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

Raj Shrikant Thackeray (Marathi: राज श्रीकांत ठाकरे) (born 14 June 1968) is the founder and president of the right-wing^{[citation needed]}Marathi ethnocentric regional political party, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena ("Maharashtra Reformation Army") in the state of Maharashtra, India. His official name is Swararaj which means the king of musical notes. He is the nephew of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, and a cousin of the current Shiv Sena Executive President Uddhav Thackeray.

Raj was born on 14 June 1968 in a Marathi Kayastha (CKP) family to Shrikant Thackeray (younger brother of Bal Thackeray) and Kunda Thackeray (younger sister of Bal Thackeray's wife Meena Thackeray). Raj’s father Shrikant Thackeray was a musician, cartoonist and was also well versed in Urdu. He studied in Balmohan Vidyamandir, Mumbai and graduated from the Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy School of Art, Mumbai. As a child he is said to have learnt the tabla, the guitar and the violin. He also loved drawing which later turned into a passion for drawing cartoons.

Narendra Damodardas Modi (Gujarati: નરેન્દ્ર મોદી; born 17 September 1950) is the current Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujarat. Born in a middle class family in Vadnagar, he was the third of six children born to Damodardas Mulchand Modi and his wife Heeraben. He has been a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) since childhood also having interest in politics since adolescence. He holds a master's degree in political science. In 1998, he was chosen by L. K. Advani, the leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), to direct the election campaign in Gujarat as well as Himachal Pradesh.

He became Chief Minister of Gujarat in October 2001, promoted to the office at a time when his predecessor Keshubhai Patel had resigned, following the defeat of BJP in the by-elections. His tenure as chief minister of Gujarat began on 7 October 2001, and he is the longest serving Chief Minister of the state of Gujarat. In July 2007 he became the longest serving Chief Minister in Gujarat's history when he had been in power for 2063 days continuously. He was elected again for a third term on 23 December 2007 in the state elections, which he had cast as a "referendum on his rule".

Uddhav Thackeray (Marathi: उद्धव ठाकरे) (born 27 July 1960) is the executive president of the Shiv Sena, a right-wing, Marathi ethnocentric regional political party based in the Indian state of Maharashtra. He was given this role in 2004, taking over from his father and party founder, Hindu nationalist politician Balasaheb Thackeray.

Earlier, Uddhav was looking after Saamana (a daily Marathi newspaper) while being actively involved in election campaigning activities. The party won the Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation election in 2002 and, thereafter, he was appointed as the party working president in 2003. Differences between Thackeray and former Shiv Sena leader Narayan Rane culminated in the expulsion of Rane from the Shiv Sena. Another split in the Sena came when Thackeray and his cousin Raj Thackeray had a falling-out, leading to Raj leaving the Shiv Sena in 2006 to form his own party, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena.

The Maharashtra Desha, a book by Uddhav, depicts the heritage of Maharashtra in the form of aerial photographs.