'We are worth much more than that...': Entrepreneur Shantanu Naidu joins ‘18-hour workday’ debate

Entrepreneur Shantanu Naidu, a General Manager in the office of industrialist Ratan Tata, has shared his opinion on ‘the 18-hour workday for freshers' idea, proposed by his namesake, Bombay Shaving Company CEO Shantanu Deshpande. After receiving severe backlash, Deshpande apologised in his ‘final post’ on LinkedIn.

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Naidu, too, took to LinkedIn to opine on the issue. “I think the problem with this toxic hustle culture is that it brings down the value of a person only down to his achievements and productivity, and I think as human beings, we are worth much more than that,” the 28-year-old founder of GoodFellows, a startup which connects youngsters with senior citizens, said in a video message.

People who want to work 18 hours a day are free to do so, Naidu further remarked. “But to preach that to young, impressionable minds is not a great idea because that's not what makes us individuals and human beings,” he added.

“In the end, it's more relationships, and love, and what we leave behind for other people that really makes us human beings, and not being valued at how much work I did today,” the MBA graduate from Cornell University concluded, conceding that his may be a ‘problematic’ opinion, but, nevertheless, is his opinion.