Madhavan says son Vedaant’s dedication makes him feel he is doing nothing in comparison | Bollywood News
R. Madhavan has often spoken proudly about his son Vedaant Madhavan, who has steadily made a name for himself in competitive swimming. Over the years, the actor and his wife Sarita have frequently been praised for the support and sacrifices they made for Vedaant’s training, including relocating abroad for better opportunities.
However, Madhavan believes parents across the country make similar sacrifices for their children, whether they are in the spotlight or not. In an earlier conversation with Siddharth Kannan, the actor spoke about how deeply inspired he feels by his son’s discipline, resilience and commitment towards the sport.
“Whatever sacrifices Sarita and I have made, I think every parent makes similar sacrifices for their children. Just because we are celebrities, it becomes visible to people. I don’t think in any way that we are sacrificing more than ordinary parents. By God’s grace, because we have fame and money, our sacrifices are actually limited. There are many people who do much more than us, and that is the truth,” he said.
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Vedaant’s commitment inspires Madhavan
Madhavan further shared that he believes both Vedaant and his wife Sarita possess far greater commitment than he does. Recalling one particular incident, the actor spoke about how his son handled a heartbreaking setback during a swimming competition after months of intense preparation.
“I am absolutely certain that Vedaant and Sarita have much more commitment than I do. When I look at my son’s dedication, I get very inspired. Recently, for six months, he trained relentlessly. He used to wake up at four in the morning, work out, swim and stay completely focused on his timings. Then suddenly a competition comes where he has to compete, and during the event he gets food poisoning for one day. Because of that one day, all the eight months of training, the pain, waking up early, taking ice baths and everything he had done — all of it gets negated as an athlete,” he said.
The actor compared the experience to narrowly missing a jackpot despite coming incredibly close after putting in enormous effort.
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“It’s like hitting a jackpot and missing it by one number,” Madhavan added.
What impressed the actor most, however, was the way Vedaant responded to the disappointment instead of giving up.
“When he faces those challenges and still says, ‘It’s alright, I will start from the beginning. I will do the next six months all over again,’ seeing that courage inspires me deeply. I feel like I am doing nothing compared to what he is doing,” he said.
Earlier, Madhavan had also spoken in detail about his parenting style and the decision he and his wife Sarita Birje made to relocate to Dubai during the Covid-19 lockdown to support their son’s swimming career.
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Why R. Madhavan and his family moved to Dubai
Speaking to The Hindu in 2025, Madhavan revealed that the move became necessary at a crucial stage in Vedaant’s journey as a competitive swimmer.
“It was an essential decision taken at the right moment. Vedaant was going through his growth spurt as a teenager, and not having a pool to swim would have meant the end of his international swimming career,” he said.
Recalling the period during the pandemic, Madhavan shared that swimming pools across Mumbai and the rest of India had shut down due to Covid-19 restrictions, leaving the family anxious about Vedaant’s training. According to the actor, they eventually decided to move after learning that Dubai had resumed classes and training sessions under strict supervision.
Madhavan says he is a ‘6/10 parent’
During the same interview, Madhavan was also asked how he would rate himself as a father. The actor gave himself a modest score of 6 out of 10 and admitted that his profession often prevents him from being as present as he would like to be.
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“There are things that I would want to do as a father which I’m unable to because of my profession. My wife is a much more hands-on parent than I am. I do the philosophical and guidance part… telling Vedaant what has to be done. However, at the same time, we are also very nervous because he’s attained recognition to an extent that may be disproportionate to his achievements to date, and that too at such a young age,” he noted.
Elaborating further, Madhavan said his biggest concern was not whether Vedaant would become more successful, but whether he would remain grounded despite the early fame and attention.
“I’m not worried about whether he’ll make it bigger or not. I’m more worried about whether he has the smartness to understand that this recognition will soon fade, and one has to take that as a passing phase, and earn all the other accolades that he has in mind, thus making his own name,” he added.
Madhavan married Sarita Birje in 1999. Their son Vedaant, born in 2005, is currently based in Dubai, where he balances his education alongside rigorous swimming training.
