Goodbye and well played, captain

'Well played, Captain,' said the posters at the Shivaji-park crematorium.

- Shruti Pandit

Below the caption was the smiling face of Piyush Pandey, the adguru of the globe.

Most present at the funeral of the Global Chief Creative Officer of Ogilvy were still trying to wrap their heads around the fact that their friend/philosopher/ guide/mentor was no more. Some looked lost, some searched for a familiar face the sea of people in attendance to find solace in a handshake or hug.

Since yesterday quite a few groups of Ogilvy alumni suggested that we should honour the man (man in black) and wear black for the funeral instead of the customary white. And some followed it. That included Balki, the director-producer and people from the ad fraternity, who at some time of their life worked directly or indirectly with Piyush Pandey. Everyone in black condoled each other, hugged each other; even if it was a face that they didn’t remember.

They knew that they were in black because they cherished, loved and mourned the man who shaped them in some way or the other.