Indian advertising legend Piyush Pandey passes away at 70

Image for representational purpose only. Photo Courtesy: File pic

Legendary Indian adman Piyush Pandey has passed away at 70. He was "battling an infection that took a serious turn", said Ogilvy advertising agency in a statement.

The statement further read, "To our entire Ogilvy family, It is with an unfathomable sense of loss that I write to you about the passing away of our beloved Piyush Pandey. Piyush was battling an infection that took a serious turn. He passed away peacefully this morning. I cannot even imagine how each one of us is going to process this terrible loss in our own way."

Known to be one of the biggest names of advertising in the country for more than four decades, Pandey gave a voice to the likes of Asian Paints with "Har khushi mein rang laaye", Cadbury's "Kuch khaas hai" among others including BJP's 2014 election campaign "Abki Baar Modi Sarkar" with the iconic slogan "Achche Din Aane Wale Hain". He is also known for the cute 'ZooZoo' characters for Vodafone and spearheading public service campaigns like the 'Do Boond Zindagi Ke' Polio Abhiyaan with Amitabh Bachchan.

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Paying tribute to one of his many iconic campaigns with Fevicol with the slogan "Fevicol ka mazboot jod hai, tootega nahi!" and mourning his loss, Indian filmmaker Hansal Mehta shared on X, "Fevicol ka jod toot gaya. The ad world lost its glue today. Go well Piyush Pandey."

Even popular musician Ehsaan Noorani, who is also a part of Bollywood's much-loved trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, shared his sadness on X saying, "Rest in Peace Piyush Pandey the man who redefined creativity in advertising and creating the most memorable campaigns."

The Executive Chairman and Chief Creative Officer Worldwide of world-renowned advertising agency Ogilvy, he is also the recipient of the LIA Legend Award, and Padma Shri in 2016.

Born in Jaipur, Piyush's siblings include film director Prasoon Pandey and singer-actor Ila Arun. He also played the Ranji Trophy for the state of Rajasthan and has even worked as a tea taster before finding his calling in advertising, when he joined Ogilvy in 1982.

(With inputs from IANS)