Internships at startups are often demanding, but what makes it even more daunting is the lack of incentive at the end of all the hard work and no play. 

A Bengaluru-based startup founder took to social media to talk about the grim realities of the intern culture at the city’s startups, which often grab headlines either due to their founders or their valuations. In his post, he highlighted the stark differences in the compensation that the founders receive and the stipend that comes to the interns. 

In his LinkedIn post, he also talked about how the interns’ value and effort are seldom acknowledged in the cutthroat ecosystem.

The founder wrote: “BENGALURU TECH LIFE: FOUNDER SALARY: ₹5L per month, INTERN SALARY: ₹15,000 per month. Founder sends voice notes at 2 am: ‘Bro, urgent fix needed’. Intern makes 20-slide decks, builds MVP alone, handles support on Sundays, and still hears: ‘You lack hustle mindset’.” 

He also noted that the difference in the outcomes for the intern and the founder is equally lopsided, if not more. “REWARDS: Founder raises $5M + gets featured in Forbes. Intern: ₹500 Amazon voucher and a LinkedIn shoutout: “Big shoutout to our ninja!” MODERN STARTUP KARMA (sic).”

The post struck a chord with social media users, with most users agreeing to the original poster’s take. “Hahaha. This is so on point (sic),” a user wrote. “Karma hits back too (sic),” a second user said. 

“Interns working with founders are future founder,” a third user said. 

“True that. People who do most of the work gets the least amount of compensation,” a fourth user weighed in. 

“I’m not sure how long this approach can survive. That intern they are underpaying or taking for granted today might be their strongest competition tomorrow,” another netizen commented. 

“First of all, no one hires interns quickly, and even if they get a job, it is unpaid, or the salary is 5000, 10000, 15000, but they have to do all this to gain experience,” yet another user wrote.