Piyush Pandey, the legendary advertising icon, passed away on Friday, October 24, 2025, leaving the industry in mourning. Throughout his illustrious career spanning more than four decades, Piyush created several iconic campaigns for brands like Cadbury and Fevicol. He also penned the lyrics for the national integration anthem ‘Mile Sur Mera Tumhara’.
For those who may not know, the national-unity musical campaign beautifully blended voices and regions across India. In an interview with BrandEquity, he recalled how several big names, including Amitabh Bachchan, Mithun Chakraborty, and Jeetendra, joined the project for just one shot.
He said, “Mr Bachchan, Mithun Chakraborty, and Jeetendra were there for just one shot. No one asked, ‘Mera role kya hai?’ They came, did their part, and together, they created history.”
Have a look at the song below:
About ‘Mile Sur Mera Tumhara’
For those who don’t know, the music of the song was composed by Bhimsen Joshi, Louis Banks and Vaidyanathan. However, the cinematography of this song was done by RM Rao and directed by Kailash Surendranath.
Celebrities featured in ‘Mile Sur Mera Tumhara’
The song features notable celebrities like Shabana Azmi, Om Puri, Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Haasan, Tanuja, Hema Malini, Sharmila Tagore, Waheeda Rahman, Ramanathan Krishnan, Prakash Padukone, Diana Edulji, Arun Lal, S Venkataraghavan, Mallika Sarabhai, Sudharani Raghupati, Mario Miranda, Mrinal Sen and Sunil Gangopadhyay.
Condolences pour in
The Bengal Files director Vivek Agnihotri offered his respects by acknowledging Piyush Pandey’s legacy. He took to his X account and wrote, “Kuch khaas tha…When I joined O&M, as a trainee, everyone spoke the Queen’s English. They wanted India to sound like London. And then there was Piyush Pandey, with Rajasthani moustache, sitting in a smoky corner, writing in Hindi, making words smell of mitti and sound like home.”
He further added, “He didn’t sell brands. He sold emotions. He made us feel that Har shabd kuch kehta hai. Har insaan kuch kehta hai. That every heart, every story could speak in our own tongue. And yes, you’ll live on in every ad that feels like India, in every line that tastes meetha, meetha. Kuch nahin bahut khaas tha tum mein….We won’t let you go from our memories, Piyush, kyonki yeh majboot jod hai, itni asaani se tootega nahin. Om Shanti.”
