- Akshat Shrivastava claims Indians are the most overworked people due to systemic pressures
- Children study 10-12 hours daily to prepare for competitive exams, fostering a survival mindset
- Many Indians sacrifice sleep, family, and health to serve companies, unlike European colleagues
Akshat Shrivastava, a finance advisor and a content creator, has sparked a debate online after saying that Indians are the most overworked people on earth, not by choice, but because of systemic pressures ingrained from a young age. Taking to X, Mr Shrivastava cited the example of children studying 10-12 hours a day to prepare for competitive exams. This ability to "slog", he argued, carries over into adulthood. "Many hardworking Indians migrate abroad. While their European colleagues have downtime, Indians sacrifice their sleep, family and health to serve their company," he wrote.
The content creator attributed this pattern to a survival mindset that begins from a young age. "What's the root cause of all this? Well, it comes down to building survival instincts from a young age," he said, adding: "Many hardworking kids have no choice but to slog."
"Build merit - build a better life. That's their only option. They work silently, putting in hours. Right from the time they are 12-13-year-old kids. Why? because working hard is 100x better than entitled begging," he wrote.
Mr Shrivastava's post has triggered mixed reactions on social media. While several users agreed with him, others shared their critical perspective.
"Indians are often trapped in a cycle of relentless hard work, chasing middle-class stability without questioning the true return on investment for their efforts. The grind for IIT or NIT can open doors, but why does the pressure to top the class start so early, robbing teens of their youth?" questioned one user.
"Indians don't hustle out of ambition. They hustle because the system taught them there's no safety net, only grind or fall," expressed another.
"It's not hustle culture, it's survival culture. For many Indians, hard work isn't ambition-it's the only way out," commented a third user.
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"India's work ethic is rooted in survival, not passion. From competitive exams to corporate cubicles, the system teaches us that hard work is the only escape from poverty and mediocrity. This mindset-while admirable-often rewards burnout, not brilliance. Children sacrifice play for tests, adults sacrifice health for targets," said another.
However, one user wrote, "Hard work is not the problem. Mindset is. Indians need to know: hard work is not the key to success - leverage is."
"If you are born among 1.5 billion people in a 3rd world country, Hard work and Struggle are inevitable," expressed another.
