After 70-Hour Work Week, Narayana Murthy Faces Flak For Remarks On Disciplined Parenting

Just months after he faced criticism for advocating a 70-hour work week, Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy is under the spotlight again with his recent comments on parenting and discipline. While speaking at the launch of the 13th edition of Paul Hewitt’s book “Conceptual Physics” in Bengaluru, Murthy stated that parents who watch movies instead of imposing discipline on their children cannot expect them to focus on their studies.

Murthy’s comments came in response to a question about how students can maintain focus in today’s world, given the numerous distractions, including social media. “If the parents are going and seeing movies and then telling ‘children, no, no, you study,’ (that won’t work),” he was quoted as saying by Times of India I.

He said that he and his wife Sudha Murty would spend more than three and a half hours every day reading to their children – Akshata and Rohan Murty.

This was practised by parents in order to ensure that children were disciplined within and outside the home. He said that any television watching was prohibited from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM and the family only read and studied at these times. After dinner, the family went on the same from 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM, as per Murthy. “My wife’s logic was, if I am watching TV, I cannot tell my children to study. So she said, ‘I will sacrifice my TV time, and I will also study’,” he said.

This comes after his previous suggestion that young professionals should work 70 hours a week to boost productivity.

Murthy’s latest remark has angered the internet, with many questioning how individuals can balance work and family life if they are working such long hours.

“But if parents work for 72 hours as you recommend then when will they devote time to kids?”, wrote an X user.

Another user summed up Murthy’s comments, writing, “Don’t watch TV. Work for 14 hours a day. Don’t ask for a salary hike. Be an obedient slave of corporations. Don’t enjoy life and Die. -Narayan Murti.”

The criticism continued with another comment that read, “Parents and kids should stop watching movies and resolve support tickets for 70 hours per week on the night shift at a low salary.”

Another user added, “It’s unrealistic to expect every parent to dedicate hours to reading or studying with their kids, especially in today’s world where many parents are juggling jobs, household responsibilities, and more. Not all families have the same resources or time. Imposing this ideal on everyone is out of touch with the reality most parents face. Creating an environment for discipline doesn’t mean parents need to sacrifice every moment of personal time. Balance is key, not rigid, outdated expectations.”

Earlier, the 78-year-old Narayana Murthy defended his remarks on young professionals working 70 hours a week, by drawing on his own experience of working nearly 90 hours a week during the early days of Infosys, claiming it was not a waste of time.