Hansal Mehta Slams Industry For 12-Hour Day Shift Amid Deepika Padukone's Work-Life Balance Debate: 'Endless Commute, Broken Sleep...'

Filmmaker Hansal Mehta criticised the industry's work culture, pointing out that a 12-hour day is referred to as a 'shift,' while in reality, between chaotic shoots, endless commutes, rushed meals, and just a few hours of broken sleep, little remains for personal life. His remarks come in the wake of Deepika Padukone's work-life balance debate, where she demanded an 8-hour workday after becoming a mother, sparking widespread discussion in the industry.

Hansal Mehta Slams Gruelling Work Hours In Industry

Taking to his X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, October 10, Hansal wrote, "Where does our mental health or physical well-being fit into this equation? Weekends are rarely weekends. Breaks are looked down upon. Somewhere along the way exhaustion became normalised and rest became a privilege. Sometimes I wonder: can this really be called an industry if it runs on the relentless draining of its people?"

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Hansal Mehta Mentions How Daily Wagers Are Affected The Most

Further, Hansal highlighted that the hardest hit are those with the least power, daily wagers, who are always the first to arrive and the last to leave, surviving in conditions that would be deemed inhuman anywhere else. On television, it's even worse, and now OTT platforms and films have begun following the same pattern.

He added that the arrival of global corporations is often celebrated with the belief that they will bring better systems. But more often than not, they simply adapt to the broken ones already in place, because it’s profitable.

Hansal added, "I truly believe that if we cared about well-being, ours and especially those who hold up the base of this pyramid we’d not only work better, but live better. The irony is that quality, efficiency, and even profit would follow. But first, we need to stop scoffing at the simple idea of rest. Because without that, what are we really building?"