Legendary ad man Piyush Pandey likes to keep things real. He has been in the business for over 40 years, and with the same agency – Ogilvy. Pandey has truly touched consumers’ hearts with his slice-of-life ad scripts.
Madhukar Sabnavis, former vice chairman and director, client relations, Ogilvy, has worked with Pandey for many years. The duo has pitched for several businesses and worked on iconic campaigns together.
As Pandey is stepping into an advisory role and giving up his position as executive chairman of Ogilvy India, Storyboard18 caught up with Sabnavis to recap some of the best work of the two of them and more.
Do you recall your first meeting with Piyush? What has not changed about him from then and now?
I met him first in 1988 when I joined the agency as an account supervisor. He had just moved into the creative department and was one of the rising stars of Ogilvy. My first interaction was just a hi-hello. We didn’t overlap on brands. But I remember a campaign on Eclairs he was working on. Every two hours, he would rush into the supervisors’ cabin (all supervisors those days sat in one large space) and share a new expression he had for his idea, very excitedly. The childlike passion and enthusiasm for ideas he had then still stays 35 years later. That has not changed. And that will never change. That has kept him going in this business for over 40 years.
Which is your favourite pitch story with Piyush?
In fact, there are three.
We pitched for an air conditioner brand and won. But two days later, the client was pressured by his boss to give the incumbent agency a second chance and asked us to re-pitch. We refused. We had a terrific idea and Piyush kept telling me ‘Let’s find a client we can sell it to’. A few months later, he called me to see two finished films for Kelvinator refrigerator. He told me ‘You will have fond memories’. The two AC scripts were seamlessly adapted for a refrigerator. The campaign was a runaway success and re-energised the brand. My big learning — no idea is dead until it is executed.
We pitched for the Richard Gere Foundation…Heroes project. It was a multi-agency pitch. A campaign to create awareness for AIDS. The work we presented at the pitch was actually executed in total. A rare occurrence in life. A very good feeling.
Finally, a pitch for an auto client for a new launch. We had terrific work but we lost it. Two weeks later, the client gave us another brand without a pitch. The client told me we were really good but it was just a new launch that made them hesitate to give the business to a new agency. But the pitch convinced them that they had to work with us. A case of delayed reaction — and a positive one.
Which is your favourite campaign with Piyush?
Brooke Bond A1 tea. I was in Bengaluru and sent a brief and research summary to the late Ranjan Kapur and Piyush. Ranjan called me and told me they found one line in the brief…Himmat = Taakat + Dil very interesting. Piyush is cracking some terrific work on it. A couple of days later they landed in Bengaluru and two ads were presented…bansuri and bulldozer. The client bought it at the first shot. Piyush’s presentation of the scripts was terrific. The bulldozer film was iconic for its time and the launch was a big success.
Read more: Best advice Piyush Pandey has given to his brother Prasoon Pandey
What according to you makes Piyush’s innings in Indian advertising the greatest one?
He brought an Indian middleclass soul to Indian advertising. He propelled the TV revolution with slice-of-life advertising that was real, charming and touched people’s hearts. He pushed us to see the world as a standard and not just be content with being the best in India. But for me and others who worked closely with him, he taught us that while research is important, we must never forget we ourselves are consumers and people, and our experiences and observations also matter. Insights and ideas are there all around us. We just need to look for them and use them. Some of his best work is inspired by this philosophy.
What’s the best advice Piyush has given you as a friend and a colleague?
In 1999 I was offered the job to lead Ogilvy’s second agency. It was to be my first office head job and there was fear. Piyush took me out for lunch and asked what my biggest fear was. I said fear of failure. His instant response was, ‘Go fail once, I will take you back into Ogilvy. No one can take away the 14 years of success you have had anyways!’ His advice and my stepping out helped me to experiment without fear for the rest of my career. I learnt to accept that failure could happen but that shouldn’t deter you from doing new things.
Read more: Piyush Pandey and Ogilvy: A look back at Indian advertising’s greatest innings