Can't demand 70 hrs work with 20 hrs salary: Myntra founder Mukesh Bansal on Narayan Murthy's 70 hrs work week remark

While certain notable business figures supported Murthy's workweek suggestion, some online voices criticized it as being excessively demanding.

Recently, Mukesh Bansal, the founder of CureFit and Myntra, weighed in on the debate, asserting that whether one chooses to work 40 or 70 hours a week is ultimately a matter of individual preference, and that people should first consider their own priorities.

''First of all, it is a personal choice; health is important, family is important, career is important, and peace of mind is important. People need to know what matters in what priority order and then choose accordingly,'' he wrote in a post on his LinkedIn page.

He also opined that it is unjust to anticipate individuals to put in 70 hours of work per week while being compensated for only 40 hours.

''Companies demanding 70 hours/week need to also create proportional upside. You can't demand 70 hours of work at 40 hours salary. That's just not fair,'' he said.

Further, he asserted that people have the option to spend extra hours based on their own volition, driven by personal satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.

Bansal also shared insights from his own background of working in Silicon Valley companies, highlighting the importance of optimising productivity rather than blindly stretching out work hours.

''But individuals can choose to put in more hours of their own will. Sometimes the learning acceleration and sense of achievement are worth its one reward. I have worked crazy hours for companies in Silicon Valley because I was enjoying it so much and the experience came in very handy later. As my career progressed, I realised that productivity of one hour can vary by a factor of 10 and I would rather focus on how to be effective in each hour, rather than mindlessly putting in more hours,'' he added.

The entrepreneur said that one cannot use virtue signalling or shaming tactics to compel people to work longer hours.

''One cannot deny that the world is moved forward by people who work hard but it should be a personal choice. We can't virtue signal or shame people into putting in more hours,'' he concluded the post.

Mukesh Bansal, a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), co-founded Myntra in 2007 with Ashutosh Lawania and Vineet Saxena. Following the sale of Myntra to Flipkart, Bansal went on to establish CureFit.

In a podcast appearance, Narayana Murthy highlighted that India's work productivity ranks among the lowest globally. He urged the youth to contribute towards fostering a work culture that enables India to effectively compete on the international stage.

Murthy also drew comparisons with Japan and Germany, noting that these countries implemented longer working hours post-Second World War.

Previously, several business leaders, including Bhavish Aggarwal, CEO of Ola Cabs, Sajjan Jindal, chairman of JSW Group, CP Gurnani, CEO of Tech Mahindra, and Kunal Shah, founder of CRED, expressed support for Murthy's remarks.