MUMBAI, Aug. 10 -- The Gen Z protest against the NEET paper leak and the response it received in Maharashtra created an unexpected beneficiary: the Shiv Sena (UBT), which was down in the dumps after its defeat in the BMC polls and the defection of six of its nine MPs to the ruling Shiv Sena. Sensing a vast opportunity in Aaditya Thackeray's resonance with the youth during the Mumbai protests, the party leadership is now planning to restructure its organisational set-up to fight the 2029 election battle with youngsters belonging to Team Aaditya at the helm. July 24 and 26 were a significant occasion for Thackeray cousins Uddhav and Raj and their parties. Thousands of students and people gathered near Shivaji Park to participate in demonstrations called by them to support the protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi and to protest against the police lathi charge on students. The Thackerays as well as Aaditya, who gave aggressive speeches in three languages, received a rousing response from the crowd. Following the detainment of students on July 20 in Dadar, Aaditya and his partymen rushed to police stations. The party is providing legal help to the students booked by the police. Advocate Sagar Devare, who looks after the legal help cell, said they had received around 600 emails from various cities in Maharashtra asking for help. The response that Aaditya received at the protest sites and on his social media accounts-which went beyond the traditional Shiv Sena support base-came as a surprise for several Thackeray faction leaders. "It was really good to see how Gen Z supported and applauded Aaditya," said a Shiv Sena (UBT) MP. "This has certainly given him a window of opportunity to build his support base among young voters, who will form a significant chunk of the total voters in 2029. Importantly, they are not in awe of PM Narendra Modi unlike their previous generations. But what is needed is to ensure that this support lasts for the next three years." Party leaders, who for the last few months have been suggesting that Aaditya reach every corner of Maharashtra to strengthen the Sena (UBT), were happy to see his engagement with youths. "Despite the defections from the party over the last four years, we realised that there is still political space for our party and Aaditya Thackeray as a voice against the arrogant BJP regime," said a senior leader. "That's why senior leaders are of the view that Aaditya should reach out to people across the state. He proved that he can communicate with the next generation effectively, which will help the party." According to party insiders, the father-son duo is already working on plans to give a new, youth-friendly look to the Sena (UBT). They have begun increasing the participation of the Aaditya-led Yuva Sena in the party's work. The party organisation too is being restructured at the local level-as indicated by Uddhav Thackeray in a meeting last week-to bring in "aggressive and efficient" people to lead the party at the local level. "We have begun considering efficient leaders from the Yuva Sena for important positions in the local organisation," said a leader. "The priority is to appoint new office bearers below 35 years of age. It will help the party develop a new leadership in the next three years, giving Aaditya Thackeray a team of new leaders for the 2029 elections." Yuva Sena office bearers are also playing an important role in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process in order to establish a connection with the voters and reap the benefits of the engagement in the next election. Asked what the plans of his party to build on the resentment among the youth were, Aaditya chose to take a jibe at RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's recent outreach to members of Gen Z and Gen Alpha. "Anyone thinking in terms of 'plans' to engage indicates that these people are faltering, losing confidence," he said. "Instead, give Young India what it wants, deliver on promises. By and large, everyone is tired of the politics of money, horse-trading and the dirt the BJP has created by lying to the people." Senior political analyst Abhay Deshpande said that Uddhav and Aaditya Thackeray had identified the opportunity and were successful in building a certain trust in Gen Z but this was not enough for long-term political engagement. "They will have to go in for pro-active programmes to connect with the youth," he said. "The Yuva Sena is not relevant outside Mumbai. Aaditya will have to ensure that it remains active through continuous programmes for the youth across the state for the next three years. If they succeed in this, it will provide a good opportunity for Aaditya Thackeray and his party to revive their standing in electoral politics." Can Aaditya do it? That remains to be seen....