Bollywood actor R Madhavan recently opened about a piece of parental council he had received during his student exchange days in Canada, one that continues to guide how he evokes his son, Vedaant. In conversation with Edelweiss Asset Management CEO Radhika Gupta, Madhavan told her experience of living abroad and the lesson from his Canadian hosts, ”Don’t give your child free time“
A troubled city but a stable home
During his exchange in Canada, Madhavan lived in a society that struggled with serious social challenges such as drug abuse, teenage pregnancies and gloomy roads for many young people around him. Still, the family stood he stayed. While many families fought, his Canadian host parents had managed to keep their children grounded and on stable paths.Madhavan shared that he was beaten by how their structure and commitment seemed to make the difference. He observed that in a place where many young people had too much unstructured time, which he saw as contributing to poor results, the host family children were occupied, engaged and disciplined.
Nuclear Council: “Don’t Give Your Child Free Time”
When he was pressed on how this insight, his attitude formed parenting, Madhavan distilled it to this guiding principle: Do not leave children with too much free time. He explained that unstructured, unattended time can be an invitation to harmful habits, especially in environments where group pressure or risky temptations are located.He revealed that he applies this to his own parenting now: to give children purpose, routine, monitored commitment and meaningful tasks help them to avoid being drawn into negative impact. He believes that this advice is a gift from his host family and is now actively using it with his son.
Voting
Do you agree with Madhagan’s advice on parenting to limit free time for children?
Turn wisdom into practice: how parents can use this principle
Based on Madhavan’s reflection and modern parental research, here are five ways to translate “Don’t give your child free time” to positive routines that build habits rather than stress –
- Structured downtime, not full scheduling: Children need to rest, play and unstructured creativity but completely free, unsurpassed hours often lead to driving. Offer guided options: reading, drawing, board games, family cooking time.
- Data ownership and chores: Give
children Meaning responsibility such as age -adapted chores, care of a pet, helps to plan a family destination. These give purpose and reduce speechless hours. - Scheduled creative projects: Block time for projects (art, model building, science kits) that children expect and return to, rather than letting them run between units.
- Active Monitoring and Check -in: Knowing what your child is doing, even a 5-minute control, helps prevent them from sliding in negative ways. Be involved without micromaniac.
- Program after school/enrichment: Encourage participation in extracurricular such as sports, theater, debate clubs, coding camps that correspond to their interests. These filling time with constructive activity and social connection.
Although Madhavan’s story is anecdotal, research supports his principle. Studies of unstructured free play versus intentional structured activity indicate that too much unparalleled time correlates with higher frequencies of risky behavior in the teens. Parental research emphasizes a balance: children thrive when given autonomy and choice within a scaffolding – not total freedom, not over -control. Family routines and rituals are empirically linked to better socio -emotional adaptation, sense of safety and self -regulation in children.So Madhavan’s advice, born from observing a family who kept the children on track when many around them drives, adapt well to parent studies, which find that structure, monitoring and meaningful commitment can really reduce operation and care for development. When a parent tells you “don’t give your child free time”, it may sound hard at first but what Madhavan’s Canadian host family showed him, and what parental science reinforces, is that we do not have to eliminate leisure time completely. What is important is how downtime is framed, guided and balanced on purpose. Land hours can be tempting traps, but thought -provoking routines are the position that supports growth, curiosity and safe independence. It is ultimately what this advice is about – not to control every moment but to help a child’s life be centered, resilient and rightly occupied.
