Mumbai’s work culture has once again become a topic of discussion online after a woman shared a blunt take on long office hours, exhausting commutes and the pressure many employees face daily. Her comments
struck a chord with several working professionals who said the routine she described feels all too familiar.
The woman, identified as Tulip on Instagram, posted a video talking about how difficult it has become to maintain any work-life balance in the city. According to her, the idea of a regular “9-to-5” job in Mumbai barely exists anymore because work and travel together consume most of the day.
She Questioned The ‘9-To-5’ Idea
In the video, Tulip explained that many companies officially claim employees only need to work eight hours. But in reality, she said, workers are often expected to stay much longer because lunch breaks and short breaks are counted separately.
“There are no 9 to 5 jobs in Mumbai. Most companies want you to serve 8 hours, right? And there are some amazing companies who say oh no, because you take like your lunch break and you take like breaks here and there, you should actually serve nine hours,” she said.
She further described how employees are expected to remain in the office even after completing their workday. According to her, many workplaces silently judge people for leaving on time.
“Most of them want you to come by 10:00 and then leave by minimum, by like 7:00, right? If you bat an eye at 6:00, they are like ‘How dare you bat an eye at 6:00?’” she added.
Tulip also criticised the culture of unpaid overtime, saying many companies treat extra work as proof of dedication instead of respecting personal time.
“Most companies want you to work overtime free of charge, free of cost to them, because it’s work, right? You are supposed to be like a hard-working person,” she said.
Travel Adds To The Exhaustion
Apart from office pressure, Tulip said Mumbai’s daily commute makes things even harder. Heavy traffic, crowded trains and long travel distances often turn a regular workday into a 12-hour routine.
She explained that even people living close to their offices spend a large amount of time stuck in traffic.
“If you live within maybe like a 5 to 10 kilometre radius of your office, you’re lucky. But even after that you’re gonna get stuck for 45 minutes in traffic that’s the bare bare minimum in Mumbai,” she said.
For employees living farther away, she said the situation becomes even worse.
“God forbid you live more than 10 to 15 kilometres away from your office, because that’s two hours of travel each way. So in Bombay, there are no 9-to-5 jobs. All jobs in Bombay are 12-plus-hour jobs, because no matter what you do, that’s the amount of time you’re going to spend,” she added.
In the caption of her video, Tulip wrote that many people in Mumbai are mentally and physically exhausted, but discussions around poor infrastructure and company expectations rarely happen openly. “Sorry for the rant but as a fellow Mumbaikar I’m tired. A little too tired,” she wrote.
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People Related To Her Frustration
As the video spread online, many users shared similar experiences in the comments section. Several people said they also spend most of their day travelling and working with barely any time left for themselves.
A user wrote, “So true, I go to office by 8 am and come by at-least 9:30 pm.”
Another commented, “We have accepted mediocrity, the exploitation will only rise with time.”
“Finally someone said it. Truth bomb dropped!” another user wrote.
A person also blamed underpaying jobs and fear of unemployment for normalising overtime culture in the city.
