'Intense pressure destroys talent': Zoho CEO slams FIITJEE ad
The ad that appeared in print media used a student’s image to suggest that she didn’t perform well once she left their institute
Zoho Chief Executive Officer Sridhar Vembu has voiced his resentment against FIITJEE's latest advertisement which drew flak from various quarters for its unethical tactics.
The advertisement that appeared in print media used a student’s image to suggest that she didn’t perform well once she left their institute.
It also indulged in fear-mongering by associating a rival institute with student suicides and using inflammatory language like “evil”.
Vembu reposted the ad and said that the country needs to get out of the “ultra-competitive exam pressure” on students and young adults. He added that his company has “pledged to not even consider academic credentials” as an employer.
‘Creating zombified adults’
“India has to get out of this ultra-competitive exam pressure on children and young adults. This is one area where I would *not* learn from East Asia but instead learn from Finland which has a superb state-funded educational system that serves every child without such competitive insanity,” Vembu wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
The Zoho chief slammed the competitive exam culture and said that pressure at a young age “destroys talent and creates zombified adults”. He went on to add, “It is the rat race to extinction. Intense competition is for companies serving a market and for sports, not for children in education.”
“As an employer, we have pledged to not even consider academic credentials. We are also investing in educational alternatives that are inspired by Finland,” he tweeted.
Since being shared, the post has amassed over 2 lakh views and 3,000 likes. Several people also took to the comments section to share their views on the same.
Earlier, Indian Revenue Service officer, Katyayani Sanjay Bhatia, took to X, to share a photo of the ad on social media and wrote, “A new low in advertisements @fiitjee. You are posting a picture of a child saying she performed badly because she left your institute! I have blurred the picture because I don't believe in this disgusting way of claiming your superiority by belittling a girl child.”
‘Staggeringly insensitive’
Her post also registered over 6 lakh views and more than 5,000 likes. Since being shared, the ad has caught the attention of the internet and many users called the ad “staggeringly insensitive”.
A user wrote, “The girl and her parents should sue them for criminal harassment and defamation. Mere withdrawal of the ad or an insincere apology ain't enough.”
“I have respect for Fiitjee due to their teachers but this is horrible advertising! Don't know how this was approved in the first place that too, on the first page of a national newspaper,” wrote another.
“This is horrible! @fiitjee, please remove this advertisement from all places & issue a public apology to the general public, specifically to the girl. Any activist lawyer if seeing this comment, please initiate legal proceedings against this institute if possible,” wrote the third user.