Congress MP Shashi Tharoor mourned the death of “iconic adman” Piyush Pandey, who died on Friday, by sharing a monochrome photo from their college days at St Stephen’s. The MP for Thiruvananthapuram remembered him as “Stephanian – full of life, laughter and earthy wit”. In a post on X, Tharoor shared a photo of the St Stephen’s College cricket team from 1978, showing a young Pandey sitting in the front row with teammates, including former Indian cricketer Arun Lal.
Reminiscing about their college days, he wrote: “Devastated and heartbroken to mourn the passing of my dear classmate from St Stephen’s College, the iconic adman Piyush Pandey. Before he gave voice to modern Indian brands, he was a Stephanian – full of life, laughter and earthy wit – and (as the picture below confirms) a pretty good cricketer too.”
Tharoor’s heartfelt tribute
Highlighting Pandey’s warmth and simplicity, Tharoor wrote, “His ad campaigns reached millions, but it was his earthy charm and incredible wit, as well as his simplicity and directness, that defined him.”
He described Pandey as “a legend and a truly warm soul”. Tharoor also mentioned that he had spoken to Piyush Pandey’s sister, Tripti, to express his condolences and ended his message by saying, “May they find strength and peace to bear this loss.”
Piyush Pandey’s journey
Piyush Pandey served as Chief Creative Officer Worldwide and Executive Chairman India at Ogilvy. He joined the agency in 1982, wrote his first ad for Sunlight Detergent and went on to create some of India’s most memorable campaigns for brands such as Fevicol, Cadbury, Ponds, Vodafone and Asian Paints.
Except for advertising
Outside the advertising world, Pandey made his debut in John Abraham’s Madras Cafe in 2013 and appeared in ICICI Bank’s Magic Pencil Project** videos. He has also contributed to music and film, penned the lyrics of the patriotic song “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara” which promoted national integration, and co-wrote the script for Bhopal Express.
In recognition of his outstanding contribution to Indian advertising, **Piyush Pandey was awarded the Padma Shri in 2016.
