Piyush Pandey and the art of selling feelings

New Delhi: When Piyush Pandey spoke, brands listened. When he wrote, India felt.

And now, as the industry mourns the passing of the legendary ad man at the age of 70, it’s impossible not to think of that voice, not just the baritone that echoed in ad films, but the one that echoed in the nation’s heart.

Piyush was not merely a creative head; he was the country’s emotional sound engineer. Long before data-driven storytelling and influencer marketing, he understood one simple truth, people remember what makes them feel. And so, he made India laugh, cry, and celebrate through ads that became cultural memories.

His words weren’t complicated. They were ordinary words with extraordinary warmth.

 He didn’t craft a copy to impress; he wrote it to connect. Whether it was the “Har ghar kuch kehta hai” of Asian Paints, the “Chal meri Luna” from his early years, or the “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara” remake he helped shape, his pen always dipped itself in the ink of empathy.

But the campaign that perhaps defined his career, and India’s emotional advertising era, was Cadbury Dairy Milk’s “Kuch Khaas Hai”. In a country obsessed with politeness and perfection, Piyush showed a young woman breaking into a dance on a cricket field, unabashedly celebrating joy. 

That 1994 film changed everything, not just for Cadbury, but for Indian advertising itself. 
He made chocolate adult, and emotions marketable.

The same streak ran through his work for Fevicol, where humour and heart lived side by side. “Fevicol ka mazboot jod” was never just about glue; it was about the unbreakable bond of Indian relationships. From the bus overflowing with passengers stuck together to the egg that wouldn’t crack, each ad was a short film on Indian life — chaotic, funny, and real.

For Polio Eradication, his public service film “Do Boond Zindagi Ki” helped change national behaviour. It didn’t scream “awareness”; it whispered responsibility. Millions listened. Few ads have ever influenced policy outcomes, but his did.

That was his magic. He could sell glue, chocolate, paint, and patriotism with the same sincerity. He understood that Indian advertising was not about aspiration — it was about emotion in motion.

His voice, raspy, confident, and distinctly Indian, became the voice of Ogilvy itself. When he spoke at Cannes or Goafest, he never used jargon. He told stories about chai, cricket, and common sense. “Don’t sell products,” he’d say, “sell feelings.” And that became gospel truth for generations of copywriters.

In the later years, as the industry turned digital, Piyush never resisted change. But he reminded young creatives that emotion was timeless. “Platforms will change,” he said once, “but hearts won’t.”

His campaigns for Vodafone (Hutch), the pug that “followed you,” proved exactly that. A small dog became a metaphor for loyal love, friendship, and connection. It didn’t rely on hashtags. It relied on a heartbeat.

When Piyush Pandey left us, he didn’t just leave behind ad films. He left behind a voice bank of emotion, one that India will replay forever. From “Har ghar kuch kehta hai” to “Kuch meetha ho jaaye”, his words became part of our everyday language.

He was the only man who could sell a feeling as a product, and yet make it feel priceless.
That was the voice that sold emotion.

 And we all bought it, happily, for life.