11 hours ago
Shark Tank India takes a dig at Narayana Murthy's '70-hour work week' comment: ‘Turn your millionaire bosses into billionaires'
Registrations for the fifth season of Shark Tank India are now open. Sony made the announcement with a teaser that took a dig at Infosys founder Narayana Murthy's controversial comments about implementing 70-hour work weeks. He had previously said that he doesn't believe in the idea of 'work-life balance', and said that he was disappointed when India moved away from six-day work weeks. Reiterating his stance, he said at the CNBC-TV18 Global Leadership Summit last year, 'I am sorry, I have not changed my view. I will take this with me to my grave.'
The announcement video unfolds in a tongue-and-cheek manner, with several fictional CEOs complaining about their employees having quit to start their own businesses. One of them complains about not being able to play golf anymore because his employee isn't there to carry his bags. Another complains about having to take 'sharing' rides to work, but in a helicopter. The trailer pointed fingers at rich CEOs exploiting the workforce because of their greed. A voiceover sarcastically urged potential candidates to continue making their wealthy employers even wealthier by not quitting their jobs and not starting their own entrepreneurial ventures.
Also read – Aman Gupta accuses new Shark Tank India judges of trying to whitewash their image through the show: 'They saw Anupam and I become heroes'
'You can change (your bosses') lives. So, please work overtime. Sacrifice your personal life, your hobbies, and your start-up dreams. Work 70 hours for your bosses, at least until AI doesn't replace you. Keep working, so that your millionaire bosses become billionaires. Save your bosses, do not apply to Shark Tank India,' the voiceover said, as visuals of overworked employees logging in from beyond the grave while CEOs party on a yacht played in the background.
In the past, several 'sharks' have offered their opinions about working 70 hours in a week. Recently, appearing on the Prakhar Ke Pravachan podcast, Aman Gupta said that such demands are unnecessary. Viraj Bahl, who appeared on the fourth season of the show, said on The Rockford Circle podcast that a 70-hour work week is 'crazy'. He said, 'Either compensate them in the same way you are getting compensated for working 70 hours, proportionately, or do not expect them to work 70 hours. I think it's an obsolete idea. Seventy hour weeks should not happen.' Namita Thapar wrote on LinkedIn, 'Say NO to 70-hour weeks, or if you want that life, say NO to being a parent!' Anupam Mittal was the only one who endorsed the idea, writing in response to Namita, 'Not counting but am pretty sure you are up there in terms of weekly hours Better to embrace and find work-life harmony than to continue to be torn between work-life balance.'
