Note: The article is authored by <keyword id="15099386" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="dr-mahesh-bhatt" source="Orion">Dr Mahesh Bhatt</keyword>, Chief Business Officer, <keyword id="6381892" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="teamlease-services" source="Orion">TeamLease Services</keyword>. Moonlighting is by no means a new concept. Before it assumed its current notoriety in the media thanks to its wide prevalence in the IT industry, drivers, cleaners and maids have been augmenting their incomes by moonlighting, sometimes even doing things they are not trained to do. Even within professional circles such as advertising, media, education and healthcare, moonlighting has been quite widely prevalent in <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword>. Today, in the tech industry, moonlighting is the biggest open secret. This is predominantly a result of its work from anywhere (WFA) flexibility and salary structures that have not been revised for decades now, and are out of sync with inflation and the cost of living. Social media has bolstered the impact of moonlighting, making it a conversation across platforms. Leaders engaging in this conversation with a strong tone have been questioned and berated by the new generation of the workforce. The generational shift in mindset has been transforming the future of work. There are enough non-traditional traits of Gen-Z in the realm of work, workplace and evolving trends. Every 6-8 years, a new generation of the workforce enters with a different mindset. This accelerated with the pandemic-induced hybrid workforce evolution and is transforming the way of work. The predictability quotient has considerably reduced except for one thing that is certain - evolution. Moving towards a digital ecosystem has been a blessing. But was it the first flash of red light? Seamless linkages across Aadhaar, <keyword id="61610" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="pan" source="Orion">PAN</keyword> and PF in some cases brought a few such cases into the public domain. Nonetheless, moonlighting became a swift and easy choice for most employees to supplement their incomes with the rising inflation. With the pandemic, hybrid work policies, WFA mannerisms, quiet quitting, quiet firing, and moonlighting picked up momentum. According to HR experts, the incidence of moonlighting has increased in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, with people wanting to earn more money in the face of job losses, inflation or having more time as a result of working from home. However, <keyword id="115437" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="india-inc-" source="Orion">India Inc.</keyword> did not anticipate moonlighting to attain such a gigantic proportion so quickly. Other reasons could be the entrepreneurial bug that has bitten all tech employees alike, the need for higher incomes and lastly the demand for flexibility in workplaces. As per some unofficial estimates, despite a return-to-office mandate, less than 15% of the employees turn up to work, especially at the junior level. This impacts mid-level managers as they have a lesser incentive to return to office. However, there is no clarity on what level the laid-off employees involved in moonlighting fell under - entry, middle or senior. If it were at the entry level, it may just be possible that the salaries were lower compared to the cost of living in major cities. That made staying at home and working for two jobs a better proposition for them. While for mid- and senior-level employees, it could be that they got more exciting projects, helping them enhance their skill sets and of course supplementing their income. From a broader lens, for organisations, it is an ethical and moral issue concerning intellectual property. It might just affect productivity due to increasing fatigue and stress. From a legal standpoint, if the contract forbids moonlighting, it is a strict NO. A person may work more than one job in India without breaking the law unless prohibited by the employment contract. However, section 60 of the Factories Act bars dual employment for an adult worker. All in all, moonlighting is an ethical issue. It becomes a logical thing to do in India, where overtime pay is an alien concept and plentiful employees are underpaid on full-time jobs. The war of talent is real and is deeply impacting employers. Employees who are part of the skilled working population are spoilt for choice with an ‘abundance mindset’. Moonlighting in today’s world is going to stay. What is needed is not confrontation but collaboration between employer and employee. After all, human capital investments define a company and its culture!

Moonlighting – The open secret in the tech industry

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/30228376.cms" /> When love is in the air and Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, <keyword id="143" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Bollywood">Bollywood</keyword> is bound to come up with a <keyword id="24069" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="romantic-comedy">romantic comedy</keyword>. But when ad film-maker <keyword id="1612592" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Vinil-Mathew">Vinil Mathew</keyword>’s directorial debut <keyword id="1520199" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Hasee-Toh-Phasee">Hasee Toh Phasee</keyword> hit the screen a week before <keyword id="4167782" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="V-day">V-Day</keyword> (February 7), it turned out to be a better love feast than the run-of-the-mill romances. Much of the credit goes to the lead duo – <keyword id="562349" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Parineeti-Chopra">Parineeti Chopra</keyword> and <keyword id="1320874" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sidharth-Malhotra">Sidharth Malhotra</keyword> – and the <keyword id="303" type="POSITION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Director">director</keyword>, of course, who tweaked all the usual Bollywood masala into an earthy and sharp reality without stripping the flick of its dream elements. And going by the <keyword id="2034852" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Box-office-numbers">box office numbers</keyword>, we dare say that the audience loves those experiments garbed in the feel-good raiment. In other words, this Parineeti-Sidharth starrer has different offerings at different levels – whether you take it as an arty-commercial experiment or just another love story, with some nuances that can push you out of your comfort zone. 
 So how has the film fared at the box office so far? The Rs 25 crore <keyword id="1636016" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="rom-com">rom-com</keyword>, jointly produced by <keyword id="3778" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Karan-Johar">Karan Johar</keyword>’s <keyword id="62161" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Dharma-Productions">Dharma Productions</keyword> and <keyword id="7929" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Anurag-Kashyap">Anurag Kashyap</keyword>’s <keyword id="1352720" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Phantom-Productions">Phantom Productions</keyword>, hit about 2,000 screens across the country and grossed around Rs 17-18 crore at home during the first weekend, according to industry estimates. <keyword id="1861689" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="overseas-collection">Overseas collection</keyword>s stood at a little over $1 million. The <keyword id="2014761" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Occupancy-rate">occupancy rate</keyword> was 50-80% during the opening weekend and stayed at 50% on the crucial Day 4 (February 10) in the domestic market, bringing in around Rs 6 crore. Overseas collection on the 4th day was around Rs 1.5 crore. However, the movie is expected to do much better at the box office during the <keyword id="2054858" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="V-Day-week">V-Day week</keyword>. 
 
Karan Johar is also happy with the way things are going. “Thank you for the immense love and appreciation for Hasee Toh Phasee, a film I am extremely proud of,” he tweeted on Sunday. 
 
The rom-com is expected to ride on critical acclaim and we feel that is justified to some extent. For one, director Vinil Mathew (best known for his Cadbury: Kuch meetha ho jaye commercials) knows how to tell a good story, blending reality with cinematic magic. And writer <keyword id="1989065" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Harshvardhan-Kulkarni">Harshvardhan Kulkarni</keyword> has aptly supported him. The film is essentially a quirky love story between <keyword id="19563" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="meeta">Meeta</keyword> (Parineeti) and Nikhil (Sidharth) – a modern-day take about life, love and relationships. Consequently, you see a runaway professional and a turbulent soul in Meeta, who has brains but takes drugs, steals money from her family and tries to whisk off her sister <keyword id="5405" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Karishma">Karishma</keyword>’s (<keyword id="16234" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Adah-Sharma">Adah Sharma</keyword>) fiancé who is also a long-time friend of Meeta. Sidharth, on the other hand, is a more staid character with his commitments firmly in place. The resulting story weaves the chemistry between the odd pair while <keyword id="6362839" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Manoj-Joshi">Manoj Joshi</keyword> does some good work as Meeta and Karishma’s father. 
 
But one still wonders why all the soul-searching and putting life into order need to happen immediately before a crucial marriage, à la Mere Brother Ki Dulhan? Only this time, we have a runaway bridegroom, instead of the bride walking away from the mandap as is the Bollywood wont. But Parineeti is the real star cast here – bright, gorgeous, self-willed and passionate – and wins hearts in spite of her over-the-top acting. Sidharth, too, is out on a self-quest and looks laudable. But it’s the cliché plot that mars the good efforts. There are nice elements, but they come in bits and pieces, and finally, Hasee Toh Phasee remains a commercial candyfloss. 
 
One just wonders what would have happened if Parineeti and Sidharth went through the same experiences post the marriage between Adah and Sidharth. But that might have been too much off the track for Bollywood and the Indian audience who did not receive the offbeat theme of Nishabd well. Let us see if Hasee Toh Phasee can join the 100 crore club. 
 
<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/30228389.cms" /> 
 
<keyword id="805778" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="Heartless">Heartless</keyword>: Commendable efforts lose steam, again Medical thrillers are pretty rare in Bollywood and we pinned our hopes on <keyword id="17186" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Shekhar-Suman">Shekhar Suman</keyword>’s directorial debut Heartless, starring his son <keyword id="20393" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Adhyayan">Adhyayan</keyword>, along with <keyword id="20398" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="deepti-naval">Deepti Naval</keyword>, <keyword id="6381489" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Om-puri">Om Puri</keyword> and newcomer <keyword id="1935232" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ariana-Ayam">Ariana Ayam</keyword> (she hails from New York). The movie also released on February 7 and hit about 800 screens all over the country. But unlike Hasee Toh Phasee, this one had a poor start in spite of a great storyline – essentially borrowed from the American crime/supernatural/conspiracy thriller <keyword id="106100" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="80" keywordseo="Awake">Awake</keyword>. Surprisingly, the box office numbers are not officially available yet but according to one estimate, Heartless has grossed a little over Rs 1 crore in the opening weekend. That is, indeed, shocking. 
 A close look at the movie, however, confirms our fear that it could be a box office flop. Rich boy <keyword id="138003" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Aditya-Singh">Aditya Singh</keyword> (<keyword id="6354939" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Adhyayan-Suman">Adhyayan Suman</keyword>), who needs a <keyword id="6397601" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="heart-transplant">heart transplant</keyword>, falls in love with fortune-hunter <keyword id="80068" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ria">Ria</keyword> (Ariana Ayam) and secretly marries her before the surgery. But once he is under the knife, all hell breaks loose. There is conspiracy going on to kill him with a <keyword id="2054863" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Poisoned-transplant">poisoned transplant</keyword>, so that the wife can pocket the insurance money. Adhyayan’s friend and <keyword id="6382875" type="POSITION" weightage="80" keywordseo="surgeon">surgeon</keyword> <keyword id="2054864" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Dr-Sameer-Saxena">Dr Sameer Saxena</keyword> (Shekhar Suman) is also in cahoots. 
 During the surgery, the truth dawns upon the hero as he goes into <keyword id="2054865" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Anaesthesia-awareness">anaesthesia awareness</keyword>, a medical condition where the patient is conscious enough to understand everything, but cannot move. Finally, his mother <keyword id="489622" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Gayatri-Singh">Gayatri Singh</keyword> (Deepti Naval) commits suicide to make the transplant happen; Om Puri, as <keyword id="2054866" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Dr-Sanjay-Trehan">Dr Sanjay Trehan</keyword>, manages to save him and all the baddies are arrested at the end. There’s nothing wrong with the story except for the fact that medical thrill becomes hilarious comedy during the second half and Adhyayan still looks pretty stiff although the mother-son relation has been played out well. Maybe the BO numbers will pick up as soon as the audience gets used to the comical activities that take place in the OT. But can it still be touted as Adhyayan’s comeback movie? 
 
<keyword id="1977299" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Babloo-Happy-Hai">Babloo Happy Hai</keyword>, <keyword id="828628" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ya-Rab">Ya Rab</keyword> fail to make the cut The other two releases of the week also failed to make the cut at the box office in spite of some serious themes. Directed by <keyword id="475774" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Nila-Madhab-Panda">Nila Madhab Panda</keyword> (of Jalpari and I am Kalam fame), Babloo Happy Hai has a meaningful message about <keyword id="19472" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="aids">AIDS</keyword> and how people can still live a full life. But the movie has a <keyword id="110559" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Limited-release">limited release</keyword> and hit only about 350-plus screens. It has grossed a little over Rs 15 lakh on the opening day, according to TalkingMoviez.com. 
 
Hasnain Hyderabadwala-directed Ya Rab depicts the eternal conflict between <keyword id="70629" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="Humanity">humanity</keyword> and <keyword id="2054867" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Parochial-attitude">parochial attitude</keyword>, and how <keyword id="1013184" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="religious-fundamentalism">religious fundamentalism</keyword> can lead to <keyword id="6358165" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="terrorism">terrorism</keyword>. But once again, lack of promotion has failed to create buzz for this movie, co-produced by <keyword id="6370367" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Mahesh-Bhatt">Mahesh Bhatt</keyword>. Made on a budget of Rs 2.5 crore, the movie has been released in 300-plus theatres and the Friday collections stood in the range of Rs 20 lakh-plus. Overall, <keyword id="434916" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Bollywood-box-office">Bollywood box office</keyword> hasn’t witnessed too many ripples even now but movie-goers are having a gala time, sampling different genres. That’s definitely a big plus and we are waiting for more. 
 
Images: Indiatimes

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Moonlighting – The open secret in the tech industry

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