In July 2024, the sudden death of Anna Sebastian Perayil, a 26-year-old chartered accountant with an Indian affiliate of British accounting firm Ernst & Young (EY), sent shockwaves through social media and corporate corridors alike. Her family claimed that extreme work pressure pushed her to exhaustion, leading to her demise.

Perayil’s death has now started a broader conversation about hustle culture, its glorification, and its impact on mental and physical health—questions that ripple beyond Indian corporate spaces to touch on workplaces and educational institutions worldwide, including in Nepal.

While hustle culture is often associated with startup scenes or Silicon Valley tech giants, its grip extends beyond the corporate world into educational systems, especially in South Asia, where the lines between ambition and overwork often blur.

Hustle culture is no longer limited to workplaces; it is creeping into colleges, where the pressure to excel and multitask is mounting.

Shukraraj (whom the Post is identifying by only his first name), is a 22-year-old student at one of Kathmandu’s top colleges, who once dreamed of being a part of the prestigious institution.

But three years into his degree, the reality has set in. “Many people dream of getting into this college… that’s how its reputation is. But internally, the pressure, rigidness, and push that this college puts on students in the name of ‘holistic growth’ is insane,” Shukraraj said.

Shukraraj’s experience mirrors that of many students who, apart from their academic workload, are also expected to juggle extracurricular activities, internships, and never-ending assignments.

“We have to be at the college’s beck and call. There’s so much to do, and if we fall sick and happen to be absent, they even give detention as a punishment for being absent—for being ‘sick,’” he says.

His friend, who injured her leg during a Chhath celebration last year and missed a few classes, was given four days of detention and extra assignments. “They don’t see students as humans, just robots who should always excel.”

Sukraraj’s words carry particular weight, especially when viewed in the context of Perayil’s death.

Although one incident occurred in the corporate world and the other in an academic setting, the underlying problem remains the same: hustle culture’s dehumanising effect, where individuals are treated as mere cogs in a productivity machine.

A study conducted on 6,972 workers in China found that unreasonable and long working hours negatively affected self-rated health (how individuals perceive their own health), leading to chronic fatigue and even death.

Similarly, a large cross-sectional study published in Oxford Academic, of 24,685 employees in Japan revealed that overtime work indirectly increased stress levels through factors like mental workload, self-assessed amount of work, and reduced sleep, ultimately lowering organisational profitability.

The findings of these studies align with the case of Suman Shah. The 32-year-old marketing executive from Sunsari spent six years climbing up the corporate ladder, only to realise that hustle culture had consumed him from the inside out.

His typical workday began at 5 am and extended late into the night. “The culture in my advertising agency celebrated those who could outwork everyone, and I took that to heart,” he said.

But the physical toll became unbearable—headaches, high blood pressure, digestive issues, and, eventually, a thyroid condition.

Shah, like Perayil, realised too late that the pursuit of productivity was affecting his well-being. “In a country like Nepal, where job security is precious, I thought hustle was my only way forward—but it cost me my health.”

Shah eventually left the job in 2024, moving to a smaller marketing firm in Ilam, where the work culture is friendlier.

However, his story reflects a growing trend of employees burning out and leaving their jobs due to excessive stress.

In fact, a study by the UK-based financial consulting firm Deloitte revealed that 77 percent of workers have experienced burnout, and 42 percent left their jobs because of it.

“Hustle culture, with its glorification of constant work and productivity, takes a heavy toll on students and workers alike, affecting them on mental, emotional, and physical levels,” says Pratiksha Rajopadhyaya, a Kathmandu-based psychologist.

According to Rajopadhyaya, the pressure to be continuously productive leads to chronic stress, burnout, and even conditions like anxiety and depression. “Mentally, the never-ending push to perform can cause sleep disorders, constant fatigue, and emotional exhaustion.”

For many students and employees alike, the drive to succeed breeds feelings of inadequacy as they struggle to meet the often unrealistic expectations set for them. The emotional toll is huge, manifesting in what Rajopadhyaya describes as “imposter syndrome,” where individuals feel they are never good enough, no matter how much they achieve.

Over time, this chronic stress erodes both personal satisfaction and professional productivity, a paradox in a culture that equates workaholism with success.

“Nowadays, social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok are filled with influencers glorifying late-night work sessions, promoting the belief that personal worth is tied to productivity,” says Shukraraj.

“At my college, it’s the same—most students are constantly exhausted due to the institution’s emphasis on the ‘rise-and-grind’ mentality, where meeting deadlines and fulfilling responsibilities overshadow rest and social life,” he adds.

The question now arises: how can institutions—both academic and corporate—address the negative effects of hustle culture?

According to Rajopadhyaya, for universities, the answer lies not only in monitoring students’ academic performance but also in caring for their emotional well-being. Schools and colleges must build environments that encourage learning without the constant pressure to excel in every domain.

“Meanwhile, corporate environments must reevaluate their definitions of success and productivity. As research has shown, quality work comes from satisfied, well-rested employees, not those teetering on the edge of burnout,” she adds.

As the discussion sparked by Perayil’s death continues, it serves as a timely reminder that the hustle culture’s promise of success often comes at too high a price.