How Piyush Pandey turned Amitabh Bachchan’s ‘angry young man’ into an ‘angry old man’ for the polio campaign

When Piyush Pandey and Amitabh Bachchan worked together

Piyush Pandey, the creative genius who shaped the language of Indian advertising, passed away on Thursday at the age of 70.

In 2015, Piyush Pandey published Pandeymonium: Piyush Pandey On Advertising, a book that captured his journey through anecdotes, humour, and warmth. Among its most touching chapters was his friendship with Amitabh Bachchan, with whom he created several memorable campaigns including Cadbury, Gujarat Tourism, and the government’s polio vaccine initiative.

Piyush Pandey revealed that Amitabh Bachchan had done the polio campaign entirely free of charge because it was for a national cause. The spark, as always, came from Pandey’s playful imagination. “I rushed to Mr. Bachchan and said, ‘Sir, everyone calls you the symbol of the Angry Young Man because of your roles in your earlier super-hit films. How about you playing the Angry Old Man in this campaign?’ He loved the idea,” he recalled.

What followed was a mix of disbelief and delight. “They fell off their chair and asked, ‘How can Mr. Bachchan shout at people?’ I replied, ‘Of course, he can and should. He is going to do it like a dad who is upset with his child. There is love behind the anger,’” Pandey wrote, adding, “Mr. Bachchan said it would be impactful.”

And impactful it was. The campaign’s scolding tone — “Dhikkar hai ki tum kal polio ke booth pe nahi aaye…” — struck a chord across the country. Parents flocked to vaccination booths, not wanting to disappoint Big B.

Also Read: Mile sur mera tumhara to Cadbury's kuch khaas hai: How Piyush Pandey rewrote grammar of Indian pop culture – Top 5 campaigns

Later, Piyus Pandey told NEWS9 Live that the campaign’s success came from its emotional honesty: a father’s anger, born from care.

Piyush Pandey’s own journey began humbly in 1982 at Ogilvy & Mather India, where he started as a trainee account executive. Over time, he became the agency’s creative soul — serving as Executive Chairman (India) and eventually Global Chief Creative Officer.

At just 27, he dared to change the rules. In a world obsessed with English, he brought India’s own voice into advertising. His campaigns for Fevicol, Cadbury, Asian Paints, and Hutch didn’t just sell products — they told stories that laughed, cried, and celebrated like we do.