Famous ad filmmaker and theatre personality Alyque Padamsee passed away in Mumbai on Saturday. He was 90. Padamsee, who was known as the “Brand Father of Indian advertising”, founded Lintas, one of the most famed advertising agencies in India.
Padamsee has built over 100 brands throughout in his career, and created popular mascots for several of them — Lalitaji for Surf, Cherry Charlie for Cherry Blossom Shoe Polish, the MRF Muscle Man, the Liril girl in the waterfall, the Kamasutra couple etc. He had been voted for the Oscars of the Advertising World, International Clio Hall of Fame, was the author of the best selling book for advertising, titled A Double Life.
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Other than the ad world, Padamsee made noteworthy contributions to the entertainment industry too. He is well known for his acclaimed role in Richard Attenborough’s Gandhi, as Muhammed Ali Jinnah. Padamsee made his stage debut at the age of 7 and produced plays such as Evita, Jesus Christ Superstar, Tuglaq.
“Life should be full of joy, and I’m a great believer in the saying every cloud has a silver lining’. Even if you’re down in the dumps, and a tragedy or a big problem arises, the sun is waiting to peek out,” Alyque Padamsee had said in an interview in 2016.
Some prominent personalities poured in condolences for the ad guru on Twitter:
Alyque Padamsee was born in 1928 into Khoja Muslim family in Gujarat. He disclaimed his religion at the age of 18. Padamsee is survived by his four children. He had married thrice but all his marriages ended in a divorce. His first wife Pearl Padamsee, who was an actor too, died in 2000. After divorce with Pearl, Padamsee had married Dolly Thakore, newscaster and casting director. He had married a third time, to singer Sharon Prabhakar, but they separated later.
