'Office was more satisfying to ego...': Former KKR director reacts to L&T chairman's 90-hour workweek remarks

Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Chairman SN Subrahmanyan has found himself at the centre of a storm after his controversial comments advocating for a 90-hour workweek and Sunday shifts went viral. Speaking to employees in an internal meeting, Subrahmanyan questioned the need for time off, quipping, “What do you do sitting at home? How long can you stare at your wife? How long can wives stare at their husbands? Get to the office and start working.”

Adding to the controversy, the L&T chairman cited a conversation with a Chinese professional, stating, “Chinese people work 90 hours a week, while Americans work only 50 hours. If you want to be on top of the world, you must work 90 hours a week.” He lamented that he was “unable to make employees work on Sundays” and expressed his desire to instill a more intense work culture at L&T.

Amid the uproar, cricket analyst and former Kolkata Knight Riders team director Joy Bhattacharjya weighed in. Reflecting on the mindset of leaders like Subrahmanyan, he remarked, “Those of us who started working in the 80s and 90s have seen many bosses like S.N. Subrahmanyan—reasonably competent people who, thanks to the happy accidents of liberalisation, the industries they were in, and a new global order, flourished far beyond what they could have imagined.”

Bhattacharjya argued that such leaders often fail to acknowledge the role of these external factors in their success, believing it was purely their talent and hard work. “More often than not, they went home late because the boys' club in the office—with all the attendant cronies—was far more satisfying to the ego than going home to family,” he added.

In response to the backlash, L&T released a statement defending Subrahmanyan, positioning his comments as a reflection of the company’s commitment to nation-building. “For over eight decades, we have been shaping India’s infrastructure, industries, and technological capabilities,” the statement read. “The chairman’s remarks reflect a larger ambition, emphasising that extraordinary outcomes require extraordinary effort.”