In R Madhavan's podcast, a doctor responds to Narayan Murthy's 70-hour workweek: "Work is not the issue."

Since Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy proposed a 70-hour workday as a means of increasing India's production in 2024, the concept has generated heated debates. Some see it as an invitation to ambition and hard effort, while others see it as a sign of poisonous workplace culture and burnout.

On December 21, 2024, neurologist Dr. Sid Warrier appeared on an episode of the actor R. Madhavan's podcast, for a Change, which added a new angle to this discussion. In an engaging discussion, he clarified why, in contrast to his staff, working long hours feels very different to someone like Murthy.

According to Dr. Warrier, whether or not the brain views those hours as stressful is the true concern, not the quantity of hours spent. "When I'm working in my own hospital, I can be there 24/7, but because it's my thing, my brain doesn't register it as work," he says. Infosys is Narayana Murthy's baby. He can work for hours on end without becoming tired. However, tension arises when a person who works the same hours for someone else feels as though their time is being stolen away.