Shark Tank India takes aim at corporate grind culture to promote season 5

In a country where 70-hour work weeks are often worn as badges of honor and corporate loyalty is rarely questioned, Shark Tank India Season 5 is making waves, not just with pitches, but with punchlines. Its latest campaign doesn’t sell you a dream, it mocks the nightmare. Conceptualised by Moonshot, the new registration campaign takes a bold satirical approach to one of India’s most toxic workplace narratives, the glorification of burnout. But instead of lectures or infographics, it hits back with humour.

The ad opens with fictional CEOs lamenting their so-called “hardships”, from having to carry their own golf clubs to the sheer horror of actually showing up to the office, all because employees have dared to leave their jobs to chase something bigger. Their pain? Delivered in mockumentary style, complete with melodramatic close-ups and billionaire-sized egos.

Then comes the kicker, a tongue-in-cheek promotion of the now-infamous “70-hour work week”, a direct reference to Narayana Murthy’s widely debated remarks. Only here, the script is flipped. The ad spirals into dark comedy as it suggests people should work through weddings, funerals and even their own death, until AI takes over entirely. And just when the absurdity peaks, the campaign switches gears. It tells viewers Don’t register for Shark Tank India. Stay stuck. Be loyal. Serve your CEOs. Sacrifice your life for a job that wouldn’t blink before replacing you.

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That’s where the satire lands hardest by pretending to defend hustle culture, it exposes its hollowness, and in turn, presents entrepreneurship not as a fantasy, but as an escape hatch.

It’s not the first time Shark Tank India has leaned into bold storytelling. Its viral Season 3 “Corporate Bidaai” campaign touched a similar nerve. But with this new approach, the show moves beyond startup hype and steps into the role of a cultural provocateur challenging the very system it often depends on.

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