New Delhi, October 25: Piyush Pandey, one of India’s most celebrated advertising minds and the creative force behind iconic campaigns for Fevicol, Cadbury and Asian Paints, died on Friday at the age of 70, his family said.
Pandey, who had been suffering from an infection, will be cremated on Saturday at Mumbai’s Shivaji Park, according to people close to the family.
Widely regarded as the “voice of Indian advertising,” Pandey spent over four decades at Ogilvy, where he rose to become Chief Creative Officer Worldwide and Executive Chairman, India. He joined the firm in 1982 and wrote his first advertisement for Sunlight Detergent before moving into the creative department six years later.
During his tenure, Ogilvy India became the country’s top-ranked agency for 12 consecutive years in The Economic Times’ Agency Reckoner survey. Pandey was known for infusing local idioms, humour and cultural nuances into advertising, shaping how Indian brands spoke to consumers.
His most memorable campaigns include Fevicol’s “The Ultimate Adhesive,” Cadbury’s “Kuch Khaas Hai,” and several others for brands such as Asian Paints, Luna Moped and Fortune Oil. Pandey was awarded the Padma Shri, one of India’s highest civilian honours, in 2016 for his contribution to the advertising industry.
Beyond advertising, Pandey co-wrote the screenplay for the film Bhopal Express, penned the lyrics for the patriotic anthem “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara”, and appeared in the 2013 John Abraham film Madras Cafe and ICICI Bank’s Magic Pencil campaign videos.
Tributes poured in from across business, political and creative circles.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman called Pandey “a titan and legend of Indian advertising” who “transformed communication by bringing everyday idioms, earthy humour and genuine warmth into it.”
Uday Kotak, founder of Kotak Mahindra Bank, described him as “an amazing out-of-the-box thinker” and recalled how Pandey helped launch the bank in 2003 with a campaign describing banking as “common sense.”
