Shark Tank judge Namita Thapar’s bold advice to those engaging in 70-hour work week

As the debate around work-life balance intensified, Shark Tank judge and Executive Director at Emcure Pharmaceuticals Namita Thapar made a bold statement against the advocates of a 70-hour work week.

Speaking on a podcast with Humans of Bombay, Namita Thapar said those wanting to engage in 70 hours of work every week should give up the idea of marriage and having a family and urged them to think carefully before taking the plunge.

“70 hours a week and then you are putting in another 30-40 hours a week. The rest of the time, you have to get a little bit of sleep. What time are you going to give your little baby or even a spouse who chose to be a homemaker to take care of the baby? Then just spare them the misery and the mental health issues of having an absent parent,” Namita Thapar said during the podcast.

The Emcure executive further said that the higher positions at work usually mean dedicating extra work hours but companies should be able to work out some manageable working hours for the employees in medium or low ranks.

“For people where the stakes are high, yes. But common employees, have a reasonable work limit. But it cannot be a constant 70-hour workweek, which is what a lot of people are proposing,” Namita Thapar added.

What’s the 70-hour workweek debate?

Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy led several business leaders, including and Larsen & Toubro (L&T), Chairman SN Subrahmanyan, in suggesting to young employees to engage in longer work hours including weekends to combat competition and get ahead in life.

L&T chairman Subrahmanyan advocated a 90-hour work week, including Sunday in a social media post that sent the users into a frenzy.

During a podcast in 2023, Infosys founder Narayana Murthy said that the country’s work productivity was “one of the lowest in the world.”

Citing examples of Germans and Japanese during the Second World War, Murthy suggested that youngsters should consider working for “70 hours a week,” a remark that sparked widespread debate on work-life balance.

Sudha Murthy on 70-hour work-week

Author-philanthropist Sudha Murthy recently weighed in on the 70-hour work-week debate, triggered by her husband Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy’s suggestion for youth to consider longer work hours.

Sudha Murthy, in an interview with NDTV, emphasised that when people are passionate about their work, time never becomes a limitation.