Piyush Pandey, the Indian advertising legend, breathed his last on Friday after battling an infection. “Fevicol ka jod toot gaya” (The world has lost its glue today) have flooded in condolence messages for the man who is also known for uttering India’s most famous political slogan – “Ab ki baar, Modi Sarkar”. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first to express his condolences, writing an emotional note to advertising executives.
“Shri Piyush Pandey Ji was admired for his creativity. He made a monumental contribution to the world of advertising and communication. I will cherish our interactions over the years. I am saddened by his passing. My thoughts are with his family and admirers. Om Shanti,” PM Modi wrote.
The Padma Shri awardee has been behind prominent marketing campaigns for Fevicol, Cadbury, Asian Paints and many other brands.
From political campaigns to iconic ads
In 2019, during an interview with CNBC, Pandey recalled how he was initially hesitant to work for Narendra Modi in his presidential campaign for the 2014 election because he had “never worked for a political party”.
Read also | Piyush Pandey, the architect of Indian advertising, has died at the age of 70
“We never worked for a political party, and we openly said we didn’t. And then we did.” The change of heart came about because of their previous relationship. “I met the man, I said (this is) a person who knows what he wants. And a person who is willing to listen… I had no option to say no,” Pandey said.
He further stated that he first met Modi when he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat to work on the tourism campaign. “I knew the man a lot before he became prime minister and (he is) a very knowledgeable man, he never used a piece of paper,” Pandey told CNBC.
Pandey was given 20 minutes to tour seven destinations across Gujarat with PM Modi. “But after 45 to 50 minutes he was still following me to the first goal,” he recalled. “He knew the place inside out.
Their discussion ended up lasting five or six hours. “Sometimes Modi admitted, ‘You’re right. I talk too much, but you have to condense it into a 60-second ad.’ I told him, ‘Keep talking – you’re paying me to pick out key nuggets of information,'” Pandey added.
Pandey’s brief was to create a campaign that focused on Modi himself rather than the BJP and was easy to understand. “They knew the market, we knew the language… The success of the campaign… was because people were talking. There wasn’t a single word that was party speak, it was ordinary words used by the common man in the street.” This is also the case with Modi’s slogan “Modi hai to mumkin hai” or “Modi makes it possible,” Pandey said ahead of his re-election in May.
Read also | Piyush Pandey: The Man Who Gave India Its Memorable Ads
Surprisingly, not many know that former US President Donald Trump’s 2016 Hindi campaign slogan ‘Ab ki baar Trump Sarkar’* was inspired by a famous Indian political slogan. The original — “Ab ki baar Modi Sarkar” — was created by Pandey, the creative force behind the BJP campaign created by Soho Square, a division of Ogilvy.
A legacy spanning advertising, film and music
Having dedicated nearly four decades to the advertising industry, Piyush Pandey served as Chief Creative Officer Worldwide and Executive Chairman India at Ogilvy. He joined the agency in 1982, wrote his first advertisement for Sunlight Detergent and went on to create some of India’s most iconic campaigns for brands such as Fevicol, Cadbury, Ponds, Vodafone and Asian Paints.
Read also | Piyush Pandey moves to advisory role at Ogilvy India: Report
Apart from advertising, Pandey made his debut in John Abraham’s Madras Cafe in 2013 and appeared in ICICI Bank’s marketing campaign, Magic Pencil Project Videos. He also contributed creatively to music and film, wrote the lyrics for the patriotic song Mile Sur Mera Tumhara, which promoted national integration, and contributed to the screenplay for Bhopal Express.
In recognition of his outstanding contribution to advertising, Pandey was awarded the Padma Shri in 2016.
