The rise of quiet quitting

Download App An epidemic of withdrawal is sweeping through India's offices. It's measured by disengagement levels, where employees do just enough to survive on the job, and withhold any extra devotion. But it maps a wider generational shift(Illustration by Nilanjan Das/ AI)ISSUE DATE: Nov 9, 2026 | Oct 30, 2026 19:52 IST Let’s call her Tanya—a real person to whom we assign a generic name. Perhaps she can stand for a generation. Just 30, she’s at an age cusp in more ways than one. Technically a millennial, young enough to be on the Gen Z boundary, old enough to have spent seven years at the financial services firm she joined as a fresher. Part of its 12-person legal team, she handles even complex, time-sensitive cases. “I’ve earned a rep for turning around work quickly, so I’m usually the first name my boss thinks of when assigning urgent matters,” she says. Every deal, contract, sales agreement or client acquisition has to be vetted by the legal team, so it’s top-notch work, with plenty to learn. Yet, these days she has quietly taken a back seat, even keeping a distance from colleagues, speaking only when necessary.