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‘Indians are enemies of Indians’: Man working in Paris calls out toxic office politics abroad
An Indian man working in Paris shared how Indians abroad created toxic office politics.
An Indian professional working in Paris has sparked a wider online debate after sharing his experience of what he described as toxic office politics among Indians working overseas. The man, identified as Varun Varshney, took to Instagram to post a video in which he spoke candidly about his observations from a multinational workplace in the French capital.
In the clip, Varshney claimed that Indians are often “enemies of other Indians”, not only within the country but abroad as well. Speaking from his experience in Paris, he said several Indians worked in his office and frequently pointed out one another’s mistakes, at times even highlighting minor issues such as someone arriving late to work in front of managers.
Varshney added that he felt relieved to be the only Indian on his current project, as it kept him away from what he described as a toxic work environment. According to him, conversations were often repeated behind colleagues’ backs, complaints were escalated to managers, and individuals were pitted against one another through constant fault finding and internal rivalry.
In the caption accompanying the video, Varshney wrote, “Office politics done by Indians not only inside India but even outside as well.”
Take a look here at the video:
Internet reacts
The video quickly drew reactions from social media users, many of whom said they could relate to the experience. One user commented, “Had our countrymen remained united, no one could have ruled over us.”
Another shared a detailed personal account, saying, “A similar situation exists in the US. My first job after graduation was with a firm where most managers were Indian. After I left, I promised myself I would rather struggle than work in such an environment again.”
Several others echoed Varshney’s frustration. “Real truth,” one user wrote, while another remarked, “That is why the British ruled over us for nearly 300 years. They knew we were divided.” A separate comment read, “I completely agree with you. This behaviour follows us everywhere.”
One response noted, “Office politics exists everywhere, but it hurts more when it comes from your own people,” while another added, “This mindset needs to change if Indians want respect in global workplaces.”
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)
