Alyque Padamsee passes away at 90: Theatre personality, actor and ad man was brains behind several iconic campaigns

Prominent film and theatre personality and ad man Alyque Padamsee has passed away at the age of 90, reports Deccan Herald. The Quint reports that Padamsee’s health had been suffering for a while now. One of his most acclaimed roles was of Muhammed Ali Jinnah in Richard Attenborough’s Gandhi, which starred Ben Kingsley in the title role. [caption id=“attachment_5566751” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Alyque Padamsee. Wikimedia Commons[/caption] He was known for theatre productions like Jesus Christ Superstar, Tughlaq and Evita. He began his career in theatre at the age of seven with The Merchant of Venice and made his debut in the English theatre scene in Mumbai with Taming of the Shrew. An alumnus of St Xavier’s College, Mumbai, he was once the head of advertising firm Lintas, and worked on campaigns for brands like Bajaj, Lux and Kama Sutra. He is said to have created the iconic ‘Liril girl’. He also served in a prominent position at McCann Erickson. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2000 for his contribution to the arts, as well as the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and Tagore Ratna award. Filmmaker Shyam Benegal, who once worked for Lintas, said of Padamsee, “This is one of the most extraordinary people in the country we are talking about.” He also famously authored an autobiography titled A Double Life, published by Penguin.