Latest revision as of 12:00, 1 December 2025

[edit] Introduction

Piyush Pandey passed away on October 24, 2025, at the age of 70, leaving behind a legacy that redefined the nation’s creative landscape. A visionary storyteller, Pandey transformed advertising from a mere commercial exercise into a cultural force, crafting campaigns that resonated deeply with the Indian ethos through emotion, humor, and vernacular authenticity. His work not only shaped iconic brands but also influenced public health and national identity, earning him the Padma Shri in 2016 and the LIA Legend Award in 2024. Tributes from across the globe, including from Amitabh Bachchan and industry leaders, underscore his profound impact as a mentor, innovator, and humanist.​

[edit] A summing up

Mohua.Das, Oct 25, 2025: The Times of India

Piyush Pandey
From: Mohua.Das, Oct 25, 2025: The Times of India

Long before he wrote the lines that glued Fevicol into pop culture or made Cadbury dance on cricket fields, Piyush Pandey found his voice somewhere between dusty train coaches and the cricket grounds of India’s heartland. A Ranji player for Rajasthan, he travelled third-class unreserved across the country. Those journeys, says adman Prahlad Kakkar , were when he “had real education in the country’s language. He watched the heartland — real farmers, real workers — and learned his craft. Of all the advertising professionals I knew, most of whom were froufrou, he was the most grounded.”


That grounding changed Indian advertising and swapped its English polish for something proudly desi. “When Pandey joined advertising, he refused to translate ads from English into Hindi and rewrote them instead.”


It gave a largely anglicised industry what it didn’t know it was missing: the connect of the mother tongue. “Today, 99% of Indian advertising is either in Hindi or in the vernacular. That’s his legacy. You can conduct business in English, but the language you dream in is what clicks,” adds Kakkar. 
Pandey’s early work hinted at that shift. Rahul Kansal , then executive director at Ogilvy, saw it up close. “Even in a briefing, he’d use local dialect to come up with earthy slogans that touched people,” he says.


That showed in writings that felt straight out of a local bazaar… ‘Mile Sur Mera Tumhara’, ‘Chal Meri Luna’, and the Fevicol universe. “He wouldn’t jump to something airyfairy for the sake of it,” says Kansal. “He knew brands had to build their proposition first, then get lateral.”


Case in point: the Cadbury ad with the girl running onto the cricket field. “Until then, Cadbury was a completely gora brand, and the idea of doing an ad in Hindi horrified them,” recalls Kakkar. Pandey gave them a rude shock. “‘If you compete with laddus and barfis at Diwali, you’ll see where you stand,’ he told them. The rest is history. The campaign turned Cadbury from a foreign to an Indian brand, down to how people even uttered it. Chaacklet not chocolate,” laughs Kakkar.


That street-smart instinct and emotional intelligence defined him. “He wore his heart on his sleeve,” says Sumanto Chattopadhyay , former executive creative director of Ogilvy South Asia, who spent decades under Pandey’s watch. “The number of times we’ve seen Piyush tear up at an emotional ad! If something moved him, he knew it could move others too.” 


Chattopadhyay believes that empathy came from understanding both sides of the table. “He started in client servicing, so he knew how clients think and had lifelong friendships with them, which made it easier to sell brave ideas.” Kakkar saw that fearlessness up close. “He’d tell clients, ‘I don’t want to work for you if you don’t value what we do’.” 
 For all his clout, “he was a salt-ofthe-earth guy,” says Chattopadhyay. “He loved pulling people into his cabin to bounce ideas, and if a script dragged, he’d deadpan — ‘interval kab aayega ?’ — his way of reminding everyone that brevity is the soul of advertising.”


He brought the same honesty to his relationships. “We were rivals and partners,” says Kakkar. “He was doing Coke, I was doing Pepsi. We’d fight tooth and nail, then laugh at ourselves and the world. The laughter was raucous, raw… glee, as we’d call it.”

[edit] A friend recalls

Sonal Dabral, Oct 25, 2025: The Times of India

A true giant of advertising is no more.


There are so many memories that one doesn’t know where to begin. And they’re all rushing back now — of nights spent crafting ideas, of the joy of making something that felt right. Of the loud laughter ringing through the corridors of Apeejay House, the late-night work, the endless pitches, the work trips... and the holiday trips, including a “luxury backpacking trip” before going to Cannes — because, as Piyush said, “So what if we couldn’t backpack in our youth? We can do it now — just that the hotels and the Eurail will be first class.” 


That was him. Always larger than life, always laughing, always leading from the heart. 
 I first met Piyush as his brother Prasoon’s friend.


Prasoon had been a close friend since NID and we were together in Lintas Delhi at the time. We were both coming to Mumbai for a shoot. Piyush told Prasoon, “You and your friend are not staying in a hotel. You’re staying at my home.” 
And I thought, “Oh no! There goes my 5-star hotel stay!”


That first evening, we were up till 1am drinking and laughing. 


The next morning, we were woken up at 5 — because the big brother in him wanted to make sure the two youngsters reported for the shoot on time! 
And there he was — standing at the door with two cups of tea in his hands, ones he had made himself, for us. I was amazed. I was moved. 


Salute to you, big brother! 


While we were staying at his place for that shoot, one morning he caught me and said, “I have an idea for Luna Moped — and I want you to art-direct it.” 
I remember sitting at a small kitchen table, sketching the idea — a common man riding a Luna Moped across the newspaper page. The tread marks started from “This is it,” the cartoon area, crossed-over headlines about rising petrol prices, and then continued right off the page — as if the common man had ridden the Luna out of the paper itself. 


Piyush loved it. He got it made.

That was another amazing quality he had — his spontaneity and his conviction. 
By the end of our shoot, Piyush offered me a job — to join his group and his art partner at Ogilvy Mumbai. The laughter, the tea, the fun, and the ideas — I jumped at the offer.


Piyush truly loved ideas, and once he believed in one, he went all in. Working closely with him, I saw this over and over again — the way he could distil the most complex brief to its simplest, most human truth. And then, in an instant, come up with the biggest of ideas, the sharpest of films, the most amazing stories.
 It was inspiring to watch and learn from.


Piyush transformed Indian advertising — creating work that wasn’t just sharp on insight, but spoke straight to the heart. 
 He built brands that became part of our lives — Cadbury, Fevicol, Asian Paints — and also used his creativity to serve society with powerful work like ‘Do Boond Zindagi Ke’.


As his work changed the face of Indian advertising, the world sat up and took notice. 


He became the first Indian President of the Jury at Cannes, and together with his supremely talented younger brother, Prasoon Pandey, became the first Indian winner of the Lion of St Mark — arguably advertising’s greatest lifetime honour. 
 Beyond the work, he was mentor, friend, and big brother — always standing up for his teams, always with the loudest laugh in the room. 


Even after I left Ogilvy for Malaysia and then Singapore, our calls continued. He’d want to know what I was up to, share his own ideas, get excited like a kid again. 


Once I had an idea for a Fevicol film — he loved it and made it. Another time, a no-smoking film idea — which I couldn’t shoot there, so we made it in Mumbai.


Thank you, Sirji — for everything. For teaching me that simplicity is the biggest lesson in advertising. For showing me that beyond logic, there lies magic — the kind that happens when you speak to people’s hearts. For reminding me that our best ideas live right here — in our homes, our streets, in the stories of our mothers and grandmothers, our neighbours and friends. 
Rest in peace, Sirji.

You will always live on — in your work, in your laughter, and in the countless stories you inspired all of us to tell. 
 Dabral, a writer & filmmaker, was vice-chairman of Ogilvy India and, before that, chief creative officer of Ogilvy South and SE Asia

[edit] Early Life and Education

Piyush Pandey was born on September 5, 1955, in Jaipur, Rajasthan, into a large family of nine children—seven daughters and two sons. His father worked for the Rajasthan State Cooperative Bank, while his mother was a teacher, instilling in him a strong sense of discipline and empathy. Among his siblings are the renowned singer-actor Ila Arun and acclaimed ad filmmaker Prasoon Pandey, with whom he later shared the prestigious Lion of St. Mark award at Cannes. Pandey studied at St. Xavier’s School in Jaipur before pursuing a postgraduate degree in History from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi, where his intellectual curiosity and storytelling flair began to take shape. An accomplished cricketer, he played the Ranji Trophy for Rajasthan and even worked briefly as a tea taster, experiences that grounded him in the everyday realities of Indian life—a perspective that would later define his advertising philosophy.​

[edit] Career at Ogilvy & Mather

Pandey joined Ogilvy & Mather India in 1982 as a client servicing executive, marking the beginning of a transformative four-decade journey. His first ad was for Sunlight Detergent, a modest start that belied his future influence. Recognizing his creative potential, he transitioned into the creative department after six years, where he quickly rose through the ranks to become National Creative Director and eventually Executive Chairman India and Chief Creative Officer Worldwide. Under his leadership, Ogilvy India was ranked the No. 1 agency for 12 consecutive years in The Economic Times Agency Reckoner survey, a testament to his strategic vision and creative excellence. In 2023, he stepped down from executive roles to serve as Chief Advisor, continuing to mentor the next generation of creatives until his passing. His tenure not only elevated Ogilvy but also positioned Indian advertising on the global stage, with campaigns that won numerous international accolades, including Cannes Lions.​

[edit] Iconic Advertising Campaigns

Pandey’s genius lay in his ability to craft campaigns that transcended product promotion, embedding themselves into the cultural fabric of India. His work for Fevicol, Cadbury, Asian Paints, and the Pulse Polio campaign exemplifies this legacy of emotional storytelling.

[edit] Fevicol – “Fevicol ka Mazboot Jod”

One of Pandey’s most enduring creations was the Fevicol campaign, which turned a humble adhesive into a national metaphor for resilience. The iconic “bus stuck” ad, depicting a crowded village bus held together by Fevicol despite extreme strain, became a cultural phenomenon. Through humor and relatable rural imagery, Pandey conveyed strength and reliability without overtly stating product benefits. The tagline “Fevicol ka jod hai, tootega nahi” (The Fevicol bond won’t break) entered everyday vernacular, symbolizing unbreakable relationships. Tributes from the brand itself, including a front-page ad featuring only his signature moustache, underscored his irreplaceable role in shaping Fevicol’s identity.​

[edit] Cadbury Dairy Milk – “Kuch Khaas Hai”

Pandey redefined Cadbury Dairy Milk’s positioning in the 1990s, transforming it from a children’s treat to a universal indulgence. The “Kuch Khaas Hai” (Something Special) campaign, featuring a young woman dancing with joy after eating the chocolate, captured the emotional essence of simple pleasures. By focusing on human emotion rather than product attributes, Pandey elevated the brand into a symbol of happiness and celebration. The campaign’s success was not just commercial but cultural, with its jingle and imagery becoming ingrained in public memory. It marked a shift in Indian advertising toward storytelling that resonated with the masses, setting a benchmark for future campaigns.​

[edit] Asian Paints – “Har Ghar Kuch Kehta Hai”

With Asian Paints, Pandey turned paint advertising into poetry, moving beyond technical specifications to explore the emotional significance of homes. The “Har Ghar Kuch Kehta Hai” (Every Home Has a Story) campaign portrayed houses as silent witnesses to life’s milestones—births, marriages, and everyday joys—thereby connecting the brand to personal and familial identity. This narrative approach transformed Asian Paints from a commodity into a custodian of memories, reinforcing the idea that color and space reflect the soul of a household. The campaign’s longevity and resonance exemplify Pandey’s belief that advertising should speak to the heart, not just the mind.​

[edit] Pulse Polio – “Do Boond Zindagi Ke”

Beyond commercial success, Pandey’s most impactful work was the Pulse Polio campaign, which played a pivotal role in India’s polio eradication. As the creative force behind “Do Boond Zindagi Ke” (Two Drops of Life), he mobilized national sentiment through powerful storytelling, featuring icons like Amitabh Bachchan to urge parents to vaccinate their children. The campaign’s simplicity and emotional appeal helped overcome skepticism and logistical challenges, contributing to India being declared polio-free in 2014. Pandey often cited this as his proudest achievement, emphasizing that creativity could drive social change more effectively than any policy.​

[edit] Hutch (Vodafone) – “You and I” with Cheeka the Pug

In the competitive telecom sector, Pandey gave Hutch a distinct emotional identity through the “You and I” campaign featuring Cheeka, a loyal pug. At a time when ads focused on tariffs and network coverage, this campaign emphasized human connection and reliability, with the dog symbolizing unwavering companionship. The jingle “You and I, in this beautiful world” became instantly recognizable, turning Hutch into a household name and even popularizing pugs as pets in India. The campaign’s success demonstrated Pandey’s ability to humanize technology brands through storytelling.​

[edit] BJP’s “Ab Ki Baar, Modi Sarkar”

Pandey’s influence extended to politics with the 2014 Narendra Modi campaign, where he crafted the slogan “Ab Ki Baar, Modi Sarkar” (This Time, Modi Government). Though controversial, the phrase captured a national mood of change and aspiration, becoming one of the most memorable political slogans in Indian history. His ability to distill complex political narratives into simple, resonant messages underscored his mastery of mass communication.​

[edit] Personal Anecdotes and Tributes

Colleagues and friends remember Pandey not just as a creative genius but as a warm, generous mentor who nurtured talent with humility. Former Ogilvy colleagues recall his “booming laugh” and the way he made everyone feel valued, often inviting teams to his home for informal brainstorming sessions. Amitabh Bachchan, who collaborated with him on the polio campaign, called him a “guide” and “most amiable friend,” highlighting their deep personal bond. Prasoon Joshi, a fellow ad veteran, recalled how Pandey’s love for life infused his work, making even mundane moments feel special. His college friend Amitava Mathur shared lighthearted memories, including a failed swimming lesson in Goa, painting a picture of a man who balanced professional brilliance with personal warmth. Tributes from brands like Amul, which posted “Inka sur sabse mila” (His tune matched everyone’s), reflected his widespread cultural impact.​

[edit] Legacy and Recognition

Piyush Pandey’s legacy is enshrined in both industry accolades and societal influence. He was the first Asian to serve as Jury President at the Cannes Lions Festival and, along with his brother Prasoon, the first to receive the Lion of St. Mark lifetime achievement award. His work earned Ogilvy India global recognition as one of the most creative offices in the network. Beyond advertising, he contributed to national integration as the lyricist of “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara,” a song that celebrated India’s diversity. His belief that “no campaign is worth its salt unless the people on the street love it” remains a guiding principle for creatives. As the ad world mourns his passing, his philosophy—that creativity should live in people’s hearts—continues to inspire a generation.​