Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India]: Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone criticized Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Chairman SN Subrahmanyan for his recent remarks about employees working on Sundays. Taking to Instagram Stories, the Piku actress called his comments “shocking” and emphasized the importance of mental health with the hashtag “Mental Health Matters.”
The controversy arose after a video of Subrahmanyan went viral, in which he expressed a preference for employees working on Sundays, questioning the need to stay at home. In a particularly contentious comment, he asked, “How long can you stare at your wife?”
These statements triggered widespread criticism on social media, with many calling out the remarks as insensitive to mental health and misogynistic. Following the backlash, L&T released a statement attempting to clarify Subrahmanyan’s comments.
However, Deepika rejected the explanation, sharing a screenshot of the statement on Instagram with the caption, “And they just made it worse…”
Former badminton player Jwala Gutta also joined the criticism, posting on X (formerly Twitter). She questioned Subrahmanyan’s perspective, writing, “I mean… first of all, why shouldn’t he stare at his wife… and why only on a Sunday?! It’s sad and sometimes unbelievable that such educated people in high positions at big organizations are not taking mental health and mental rest seriously, making such misogynistic statements, and exposing themselves so openly! It’s disappointing and scary!!!!”
The incident has sparked a broader debate about workplace culture, mental health, and gender sensitivity in corporate leadership.