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Journalism of Courage
Anjali Kelkar, a customer of Urban Company, had booked a late-evening home spa appointment through the platform, hoping to unwind before a hectic week. But instead of relaxation, the encounter left her concerned about the welfare of the professional sent to assist her.
In a detailed LinkedIn post, Kelkar shared that the appointment was scheduled for 7.30 PM on a Sunday. Shortly before, the assigned service provider, Nisa (name changed), called to say she’d be delayed by 15–20 minutes due to an overrun in her previous booking—and that she hadn’t eaten all day.
When Nisa eventually arrived at 8.17 PM, her exhaustion was apparent. Moved by her condition, Kelkar offered her food and water. That was when Nisa shared the exhausting demands of her job.
Nisa arrived at 8.17 PM, visibly drained and emotionally overwhelmed. Seeing her state, Kelkar offered her something to eat and drink. “They cannot decline appointments, even if they’re unwell or overwhelmed. Cancelling three appointments means losing their profile and income for several days. In cities like Mumbai, travelling even three km can take 40+ minutes — yet delays hurt their ratings. There’s no buffer between bookings, despite the physical toll of giving a massage. They carry heavy massage tables, and Nisa was recently diagnosed with a hernia due to the strain,” Kelkar wrote on LinkedIn.
Kelkar was deeply affected by the encounter and questioned the company whether performance-driven systems should be allowed to push workers to such limits. “Isn’t it inhumane to design a performance system that sets professionals up to fail? Shouldn’t they have the right to decline a job when there’s a valid reason? Shouldn’t time buffers between appointments be mandatory in metro cities with heavy traffic? Shouldn’t we, as customers, be more mindful — and shouldn’t platforms be more humane?” she wrote.
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Responding to the viral post, Urban Company thanked Anjali for her empathy and for sharing her story and promised to escalate the feedback to the appropriate teams. “Thank you so much for taking the time to share this heartfelt message and for being a long-time supporter of Urban Company. We’re truly grateful for your trust in our services and for recognising the dedication of our professionals,” it wrote.
“At Urban Company, we are constantly working to improve the systems that govern bookings, schedules, and partner wellbeing to minimise travel overload and burnout. However, it’s clear from your message that we still have work to do — and your note serves as an important reminder of what truly matters: the human behind the service,” the company said in the comment.
Kelkar’s post ignited a discussion on the platform. One user commented saying, “… they don’t have the option to refuse a job even if the client is abusive as Urban Clap doesn’t allow them to refuse and always takes the side of the client! If this isn’t abuse and slavery, what is!”
Another user wrote, “… The service providers barely have any paid leave and can’t take a long break from work for medical/ personal reasons. They work relentlessly on all days of the week to keep their ratings up. For an outsider, it seems like they have flexible working hours, but the reality is they are at their beck and call without any choice of jobs they want to pick. If their ratings go down for any reason including taking leaves, they aren’t allotted any work. All this is without being on an actual payroll or getting any benefits an employee deserves, as UC does not technically employ them. In my limited understanding of labor laws in India, paid leave is a bare minimum of labor rights.”
A few users were also of the opinion that Kelkar should have declined the massage, but others pointed out that declining the massage would have resulted in a loss of pay for Nisa.
