The debate on work-life balance has intensified ever since Larsen & Toubro (L&T) chairman SN Subrahmanyan went viral on social media. In an undated video, Subrahmanyan can be heard saying that employees should work 90 hours a week.

During an interaction with the employees, the L&T chairman was asked why the employees still had to work on Saturday. To this, he joked that he regrets not being able to make them work on Sundays as well.

“What are you doing sitting at home? How long can you look at your wife?” asked the president. He further said, “Come, come to the office and start working.”

Needless to say, his remarks left India Inc outraged. From Anand Mahindra to Harsh Mariwala and Anupam Mittal, industry titans shared their views on Subrahmanyan’s remarks. This is what they had to say

Here’s what industry titans had to say in the viral video

GOENKA HARD

The president of RPG Enterprises criticized Subrahmanyan’s suggestion, saying in a post on X: “90 hours a week? Why not rename Sunday to ‘Sun-duty’ and make ‘day off’ a Mythical concept!Working hard and smart is what I believe in. But turning life into a perpetual office shift is a recipe for burnout, not success, it’s essential in my opinion. #WorkSmartNotSlave.”

ANAND MAHINDRA

Taking a dig at Subrahmanyan’s ‘How long can you look at your wife’ comment, the Mahindra Group chief said at an event, “I want to tell people that I’m on X on social media not because I’m alone. The my wife is wonderful; I love to look at her, so I’m not here to make friends.”

The industry titan further said that holistic thinking is key to making the right decisions. “If you don’t do it, if you don’t spend time at home, if you don’t spend time with friends, if you don’t read, if you don’t have time to reflect, how will you contribute to the right? inputs to make a decision?”

RAJIV BAJAJ

Bajaj Auto managing director Rajiv Bajaj said in an interview that what matters at the end of the day is the quality of work and not the number of hours logged. He further said, “Let 90 hours begin from above.”

He also compared the inefficiencies of an organization to a bottle, where the bottleneck always forms at the top. “Regardless of who you are and what you do at a company, you’re effectively working 12 hours a day when you factor in your commute and time at work. That’s about half the day,” he said.

MARIWALA DURO

Marico’s founder and chairman said in a recent interview that he disagrees with Subrahmanyan’s suggestion. He said he hasn’t worked such long hours a week in his career, with a few exceptions.

“On average, I worked 8 to 10 hours a day.” He added that the quality of work is important rather than having employees sit on the clock for a certain number of hours.

He also argued against pushing lower-level employees to perpetually work beyond their scheduled shifts. “They don’t have ESOPs (employee stock options) … If they push them, they could take another job.”

Nayar has come

Former HCL CEO Vineet Nayar criticized the glorification of long working hours and punishing schedules. He also emphasized the toll on energy, creativity and purpose of recording working hours. “The best ideas, the biggest breakthroughs? They don’t come from endless grinding. They come from a mind that is alive, engaged, and free to experience life.”

For the former CEO of HCL, the solution is simple that one should work more if they want to and could also work less if they can. “The number doesn’t matter. What matters is whether you’re making room for moments that make life worth living.”

ADAR POONAWALLA

Responding to industrialist Anand Mahindra’s comment ‘my wife is wonderful, I love to look at her’, Serum Institute of India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla said: ‘Yes, Anand Mahindra, until and my wife Natasha Poonawalla thinks I’m wonderful, she loves to watch me on Sundays quality of work over quantity.”

ANUPAM MITTAL

Shaadi.com founder and Shark Tank India judge gave a cheeky response to L&T chairman’s polarizing suggestion. “But sir, if husband and wife don’t look at each other, how will we remain the most populous country in the world?”

NAMITA THAPAR

Emcure Pharmaceuticals CEO and Shark Tank India judge also weighed in on the raging debate on work-life balance. He said he won’t be able to devote time to his interests if he works 90 hours a week.

Thapar said in a post on X, “Since anyone and everyone is giving gyan to the 90-hour work week, here’s one more… If I work 90 hours a week, how will I have time for Philosophy, Bollywood and Shayari, who have taught me some of my best leadership lessons and helped improve my quality of work and results?