Now Reading: Harvard-IIT graduate quits job, is in no rush to return to 9-to-5
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Harvard-IIT graduate quits job, is in no rush to return to 9-to-5
Charmie Kapoor, a designer and entrepreneur with degrees from Harvard and IIT and stints at Razorpay, Microsoft, Dunzo and Unacademy, quit her full-time job a few months ago. She says she is…
The Story in Brief
Charmie Kapoor, a designer and entrepreneur with degrees from Harvard and IIT and stints at Razorpay, Microsoft, Dunzo and Unacademy, quit her full-time job a few months ago. She says she is not hurrying back to a 9-to-5 role. In a post on X, Kapoor described the adjustment of not seeing a monthly salary message and the liberating absence of a work calendar.
She said a 'hottest startup' recently approached her with an offer that checked every box on paper, but it did not excite her. Kapoor now spends her days on personal projects, exercise, helping founder friends and running a small mango toast delivery. She reflected on shifting from an existentialist to an 'absurdist' view of life's meaning.
The Indian Opinion
This story risks feeding two lazy narratives: that quitting a corporate job is the only path to fulfilment, and that elite credentials guarantee an easy exit. Kapoor herself acknowledges the privilege of savings that made her break possible. For most Indians, walking away from a salary is not a philosophical choice but a financial crisis. The real test of her experiment will come when her savings run thin: will she still find absurdism peaceful?
Sources (2): timesofindia.indiatimes.com, timesofindia.indiatimes.com (2)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
