Every time you saw an MDH masala ad on the television, you knew it would end with the brand’s tagline ‘asli masale sach sach’ and a wide smile from its owner Mahashay Dharampal Gulati. It’s a tv segment that has transcended generations and made us take note of Indiaâs highest-paid consumer product CEO.
Sadly, he passed away on Thursday morning after undergoing treatment at a hospital in Delhi for the past three weeks. He was 98. According to reports, Gulati suffered a cardiac arrest on Thursday morning and breathed his last at 5:30 AM.
The popularity of the MDH advertisements had made Gulati synonymous with the brand in the past few decades. He had featured in almost all the tv and print ads of the brand.
Fondly called ‘dadaji’ and ‘Mahashayji’, Gulati was born in 1923 in Sialkot, Pakistan. He joined his father’s spice business in Sialkot before moving to India, where he opened a shop in New Delhi’s Karol Bagh area.
Gulati went on to build the Mahashian Di Hatti (MDH) masala empire that eventually became one of India’s leading spices manufacturers with 15 factories and offices in Dubai and London.
Not many will know that the nonagenarian was the FMCG sector’s highest-paid CEO. took home more than Rs 21 crore as salary last fiscal, higher than that of Adi Godrej and Vivek Gambhir of Godrej Consumer, Sanjiv Mehta of Hindustan Unilever, and ITC’s YC Deveshwar.
As the news of his passing surfaced on social media, tributes poured in from all quarters.
.Dharm Pal ji was very inspiring personality. He dedicated his life for the society. God bless his soul. https://t.co/gORaAi3nD9
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) December 3, 2020
Few would know the famous spices brand MDH stands for Mahashay Di Hatti, but sad news is its ever smiling owner #MahashayDharampalGulati has left for heavenly abode after inspiring generations with his hard work & dedication !
— Neeraj Rajput (@neeraj_rajput) December 3, 2020
Om Shanti đđđ˝#MDHmasale pic.twitter.com/ZrhCoONgqc
Our Kitchen King and India's most inspiring entrepreneur, MDH owner Dharm Pal Mahashay passed away this morning. He was such an inspiring and lively soul. May his soul rest in peace. pic.twitter.com/kQEPsh9BGp
— usha singh (@sushasingh) December 3, 2020