Journalism of Courage
‘We want a hike’: HCL employees’ chant during 50th anniversary concert goes viral
The Chennai event was part of a series of concerts organised by HCL across different cities to commemorate its 50th anniversary.
The Chennai event was part of a series of concerts organised by HCL across different cities to commemorate its 50th anniversary (Photo: @devops_nk/X)
A video from HCL Group’s 50th anniversary celebrations in Chennai has gone viral after employees were heard asking for a salary raise during an event with C Vijayakumar, the company’s CEO and managing director.
The video begins with a large image of CMD C Vijayakumar on the screen, then cuts to him walking onto the stage. Moments later, as the CEO greets those gathered at the event, a section of employees can be heard repeatedly chanting, “We want a hike”
HCL has not publicly responded to the viral video.
The Chennai event was part of a series of concerts organised by HCL across different cities to commemorate its 50th anniversary. The celebration included a private concert for employees featuring musician Anirudh Ravichander.
Watch here:
When the CEO of HCL came on stage, employees started chanting, “We want a hike!” pic.twitter.com/hty1tNGp26
— Nandkishor (@devops_nk) July 27, 2026
‘They showed courage’
The video has since drawn a wave of reactions supporting the employees for raising their voices.
“Yea, now thats the only way to be heard by your employer whose leadership sits on a pile of money and gives the petty employees just a handful,” a user wrote.
“I think the employees did the right thing. I worked at HCL for 6 years in Lucknow, and even after all those years, my in-hand salary never crossed ₹20,000. I still have friends who have been with HCL for 7 to 8 years and are earning below ₹20,000. Employees deserve fair pay,” another user argued.
“atleast they showed courage , In our HO people are just scared to say anything,” a third user chimed in.
According to HCL’s website, Vijayakumar was part of the founding team of HCL Comnet and played a key role in building the company’s Remote Infrastructure Management business, which later evolved into a multi-billion-dollar global industry.
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Vijayakumar also serves as a director on the boards of HCL America, HCL America Solutions Inc, HCL Latin America Holdings LLC, HCL Canada Inc, and Geometric Americas, Inc.
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