Indian actor responds to L&T chief’s ‘90-hour work week’ comment: ‘Mental health matters’
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SN Subrahmanyan’s remarks spark outrage after he expresses regret at not being able to enforce work on Sundays. Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone advocated for the importance of work-life balance after the chair of an Indian multinational company backed a 90-hour work week during a company interaction.
Larsen & Toubro (L&T) chair SN Subrahmanyan’s remarks, made during an internal meeting, sparked outrage online after an undated clip of his speech surfaced on Reddit on Thursday. In the video, he expressed regret at not being able to enforce work on Sundays.
“If I can make you work on Sundays, I will be more happy. What do you do sitting at home? How long can you stare at your wife or how long can the wife stare at the husband?” he said. He further emphasised that working 90 hours a week was necessary to “stay on top of the world”.
Padukone, known for her advocacy on mental health issues, expressed her distress over the remarks on social media, saying: “Shocking to see people in such senior positions make such statements. “#MentalHealthMatters,” she said, adding the hashtag.
While the statement drew widespread criticism, with many calling out the apparent disregard for employees’ personal lives, an L&T spokesperson described Mr Subrahmanyan’s remarks as a reflection of the company’s commitment to “nation-building”.
The statement read: “For over eight decades, we have been shaping India’s infrastructure, industries, and technological capabilities. "We believe this is India’s decade, a time demanding collective dedication and effort to drive progress and realise our shared vision of becoming a developed nation," said the spokesperson.
