New Delhi — Imagine landing your dream job in the capital, only to be told during onboarding, “No one sleeps here, bro.” That’s not a quirky slogan—it’s the actual vibe a young professional from Indore walked into when his new startup gig in Delhi welcomed him with an etiquette memo that roughly translates to: “Sleep is optional, hustle is life.” Is Delhi’s work culture stretching into uncharted—and unhealthy—territory?
Welcome to the City Where Power Naps Are for the Weak
The noise started with a recent Times of India piece featuring a professional from Indore who was offered a job at a Delhi startup—and found himself baffled by the workplace culture. Apparently, one of the lines during his induction that really threw him off was, “People don’t sleep here.”
This wasn’t a joke. In fact, it was said with pride.
The startup, reportedly housed in one of East Kailash’s many co-working offices, had a 24/7 working policy where employees were expected to be ‘available’—especially during launch sprints and funding phases. The environment glorified long hours, rewarded hustle, and treated eight hours of sleep like it was something only interns and out-of-towners bothered with.
While names haven’t been dropped for legal reasons, insiders on Reddit tech threads have alleged similar stories from companies based near Nehru Place, Saket, and even Cyber Hub. The idea seems to be: if your laptop isn’t glowing at 3 a.m., do you even startup, bro?
No Sleep Till CP? Why This Culture Isn’t Just Banter
Here’s why this little quote is turning heads: it captures a hard truth about startup life in Delhi NCR. What was once FOMO-induced banter has quietly morphed into an expectation. And while the “sleep when you’re dead” mentality might sound cool at 22, it’s a red flag with a coffee-stained cross at 32.
For a lot of young professionals coming from tier-2 cities like Indore, Lucknow, or Bhopal, Delhi is already overwhelming—higher rent, faster commutes, and brutal pollution. Add toxic hustle culture to that, and you’re asking for burnout wrapped in a Swiggy parcel.
Students at DU’s North Campus say they’re rethinking startup internships altogether. One third-year economics major at Hindu College shared, “I applied to a Gurugram fintech startup, but after reading this stuff? I’d rather nap.” Meanwhile, folks at coworking offices in Connaught Place (Regus, Innov8) confirm that all-nighters are “kind of a vibe” now—but no one’s discussing the mental cost.
This Isn’t the First Time Delhi’s Hustle Has Gone Nuclear
If your memory stretches back to the early Flipkart-Ola days, the Delhi startup circuit has always had a bit of a “hustle harder” complex. Back in 2016, a famous Gurugram-based logistics startup publicly rewarded those who worked 100-hour weeks. In 2020, a Noida-based health-tech firm’s founder went viral for congratulating an associate who hadn’t taken a single day off in 365 days. That post? Got 12k likes. No one questioned it.
Why? Because in Delhi, hard work isn’t just admired—it’s commodified. The coworking boom didn’t help either. Places like WeWork (Golf Course Road) and Awfis (Rajouri Garden) made it easy to host 24/7 teams. Cafes with plug-points became de facto offices. Even Safdarjung Enclave has seen home conversions into mini incubator farms.
In short: “People don’t sleep here” didn’t come out of nowhere. It’s been brewing over years of caffeine, venture capital, and Twitter hustle threads.
📍 Spot Check: The startup culture in areas like Hauz Khas Village, Cyber City Gurgaon, Nehru Place, and Vasant Kunj is particularly notorious for long-hour work culture. The nearby Violet Line metro (Kailash Colony, Nehru Place) sees peak footfall even post-9 p.m., not from shoppers, but laptop-wielding night-shift workers powering through deadlines at 4 a.m. Kaapi Machine cafes and late-night chai joints near Bhikaji Cama Place are unofficial ‘war rooms’ for night owls.
The Final Word
Look, ambition isn’t the problem—exploitation masquerading as ambition is. If a startup brags that no one sleeps, maybe it’s time for HR to get some therapy—or at least read a labor law. Hustle has its place, but sleep is not a luxury. It’s a right.
Delhi startups may glorify grind culture today, but the real flex in 2024? Hiring talent and actually letting them log off.
Would you join a no-sleep squad for the perks—or does this turn you off completely?
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