Deepika Padukone slams L&T chairman SN Subrahmanyan for wanting employees to work on Sundays: 'Shocking to see...'

After Infosys' NR Narayana Murthy suggested employees to work 70-hour-a-week, the Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Chairman SN Subrahmanyan has gone beyond Murthy's work call, suggesting employees to work 90 hours a week - including Sundays - to stay competitive. In a video message to employees that has gone viral on social media, Subrahmanyan sparked a controversy with his comments, suggesting employees should work 90 hours a week.

Now, Deepika Padukone has reacted sharply to Subrahmanyan's statement, advocating for mental health. Taking to her Instagram Stories, the Piku actress shared journalist Faye D'Souza's post reporting L&T chairman's words and wrote, "Shocking to see people in such senior positions make such statements. #MentalHealthMatters."

During an internal interaction with employees, SN Subrahmanyan said, "What do you do sitting at home? How long can you stare at your wife? How long can wives stare at their husbands? Go to the office and start working. Honestly, I am sorry that I am not able to make you work on Sundays. I will be happier if I can make you work on Sundays, because I work on Sundays too."

The L&T chief also shared an anecdote to justify his stance. Subrahmanyan spoke about a conversation he had with a Chinese man who said that China could overtake the US because of its strong work ethic. According to Subrahmanyan, the Chinese man said, "Chinese people work 90 hours a week, while Americans work only 50 hours a week."

The video received a backlash from netizens on social media platforms. A user wrote: "I work in L&T and had to sit through this entire thing, imagine our horror! We blame Narayan Murthy for the 70-hour work week." Another user posted: "Why CEOs, who are highly paid and have different job pressures, expect the same level of commitment from lower-paid employees? This is stupidity."