GUWAHATI: Larsen & Toubro Chairman SN Subrahmanyan has stirred controversy after a video surfaced of him saying that employees should work 90 hours a week and not take Sundays off.
"I regret I am not able to make you work on Sundays. If I can make you work on Sundays, I will be more happy because I work on Sundays," he is heard saying in an undated viral video on Reddit.
"What do you do sitting at home? How long can you stare at your wife? Come on, get to the office and start working." he says further.
Subrahmanyan went on to share an anecdote about his conversation with a Chinese individual, who told him that China could surpass the United States as the "Chinese people work 90 hours a week, while Americans work only 50 hours a week."
"So that's the answer for you. If you have got to be on top of the world, you have to work 90 hours a week. Get going, guys. Come on." The remarks were made in an undated video that has since sparked widespread discussion," he says.
The remarks stirred up controversy online as netizens drew parallels between his statements and the earlier remarks made by Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy, reigniting the ongoing debate on work-life balance in corporate India.
"Shocking to see people in such senior positions make such statements. #Mental Health Matters," Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone said.
Last year, Infosys co-founder Narayan Murthy courted controversy after saying that Indians should work 70 hours a week and that he had been "disappointed" when India shifted from a six-day workweek to a five-day workweek in 1986