R Madhavan’s son Vedaant is gearing up for one of the biggest challenges of his swimming career. The 21-year-old is set to lead India’s 12-member swimming contingent at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, where he will compete in the 200m freestyle. A long-distance specialist, Vedaant is stepping outside his comfort zone for the event and has significantly altered his training programme to prepare for the competition.Vedaant said having the right mindset is crucial. “I feel like if you want to succeed in life, you have to be kind of egotistical, where in your mind it’s already fixed, and you know that you’re going to win no matter what,” he said in an interview with PTI.Vedaant has primarily competed as a long-distance swimmer but will take on the 200m freestyle at the Asian Games. The change has required him to focus more heavily on strength and conditioning as he prepares for the shorter-distance event as well as the relay.“I’ve actually been training differently for the past few months. As you may know, I’m a long-distance specialist, but I’ll be swimming the 200m freestyle at the Asian Games, which is outside my comfort zone,” he said.He added that his training in recent months has focused extensively on weight training, strengthening his legs and improving his kick and ankle flexibility.“The past few months, I’ve been really focusing on weight training and getting my strength so I can prepare for the relay and the 200m freestyle. So, I’ve taken a whole new approach. One of my weakest points was my legs and my kick, so I’ve been really honing in and working on my kick, my legs, and my ankle flexibility so they can improve. Overall, my stroke is looking a lot better and faster.”Vedaant’s sporting journey has unfolded alongside a parenting philosophy that Madhavan has spoken about at length over the years. During a conversation at an event at the Indian School of Business, the actor admitted that fatherhood itself had been a learning process for him and explained the qualities he believed parents should encourage in their children.“I haven’t completely become successful as a father yet. It’s a work in progress, but I can share the benefit of my experience with you. I have realised that children nowadays are far wiser than we give them credit for. I have also realised that the tools that have worked in my favour to achieve what I have managed to achieve so far can be summed up in one word: grit.”For Madhavan, grit meant combining discipline with ambition. He said one of his priorities as a father was to ensure that Vedaant understood the importance of following a routine.“When I say grit, I mean a combination of discipline and ambition. I wanted to make sure that Vedaant had the ability to follow a routine. If that routine involved getting up early in the morning, then 90 per cent of my problem as a father was solved. If you are someone who is willing to get up early in the morning, you can accomplish a lot.”Swimming eventually became an important part of that routine. Madhavan recalled how Vedaant’s training schedule meant waking up at 4 am, something that also naturally imposed discipline on his teenage years.“He got into swimming, and because he got into swimming, he had to get up at 4 in the morning to train. The best part about getting up at 4 in the morning is that, even as a teenager, he has to sleep by 8 o’clock at night. The problem starts only after 9 o’clock, so I only have to keep an eye on him after 9,” the actor joked.At the same time, Madhavan stressed that parents should know when to step back. Rather than deciding their children’s future for them, he believes they should give them the freedom to discover what genuinely interests them.“The second thing is, you have to let them be. Their exposure to today’s world is far greater than ours. So, if they are able to follow a routine and a process that involves doing something over and over again because they genuinely like it, without you having to force them, then you can be sure that they are well on their way to achieving something.”Madhavan also pointed out that the changing nature of careers makes it difficult for parents to map out a single professional path for their children.“Because in today’s fast-changing world, you can’t really micro-direct them towards a profession, unlike what our fathers used to do. They are unlikely to stick to one profession for their entire lifetime, unlike a lot of people from our generation.”He went on to argue that exposure to different experiences and the ability to remain disciplined could be more valuable than pushing children towards early specialisation.“The vastness of experiences is far more important than specialisation today. So I say, just let them be. Just make sure that they have the discipline to do something over and over again for multiple years while they are with you. Then you can be rest assured that they will have the ability to apply themselves to whatever their interests may be.”According to Madhavan, developing expertise and learning to excel at something can also give children the confidence to apply themselves in other areas.“For them to peak at a much earlier stage today is far more important and relevant. And for them to become experts—even if it is in something as simple as sewing a button—if they are the best at what they do by the age of 21, they will have the ability to apply themselves. And I think that is the least lesson you can teach your child.”Vedaant, who has been pursuing swimming professionally, is now set to put those lessons into practice on the Asian Games stage. He was born to Madhavan and his wife Sarita Birje in 2005, and the family relocated to Dubai during the Covid-19 pandemic as he continued to pursue his swimming career.
