Parenting Aaradhya: Abhishek Bachchan Has A Refreshing Take On Modern Fatherhood

Father to 13-year-old Aaradhya, Abhishek Bachchan recently shared how he and Aishwarya have adapted their parenting style to keep up with their daughter’s needs. In a recent interview, Abhishek opened up about how his approach to parenting differs from that of his parents, Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan.

Commenting on his daughter’s generation, he says, “I think they (children) will show you the way ahead. One thing that I’ve realised with the younger generation is that they are very different. To start with, they have no sense of hierarchy like we did. When we grew up, we knew that once your parents say something, you just listen to it. The younger generation is far more inquisitive. They want to know why. They will not just do something because their parents said it. Just because you are older does not mean you have the right answer, they have Google.”

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He added that children now come to their parents for love and don’t need them to answer their questions. “They are not dependent on their parents for that factor. They need a justification of why they are doing something and I think that’s wonderful. They will dictate how we treat them going forward. Mine just turned 13, she has about 50 trillion questions on an hourly basis.”

He credits his niece, Navya and nephew Agastya for making his parenting journey smoother. “With Aaradhya, I had a bit of a soft landing because I have seen my niece and nephew grow up. I was kind of used to it and knew what to expect with Aaradhya.” Adding to his experience with them, he said, “they are by no means rude, in fact, they are very well mannered. We just need to tilt our perspective towards it”.

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The actor also shared that he consciously avoids imposing his own childhood experiences onto Aaradhya. While his parents relied on structure and discipline, Abhishek prefers a more flexible style. He also feels that parents aren’t always the best teachers for their children and that parents should lead by example.

He said, “I don’t know if parents are the best teachers, I am on the fence for that. I think our emotions and desire for our children to get it right, succeed, and not hurt themselves come in the way. Our emotions towards them maybe colour our judgement. A parent should lead and teach by example. Today, whatever I have learnt and imbibed from my parents is by seeing the way they conduct themselves. Not necessarily by what they told me I should be doing.”

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Parents who are raising children today have a lot to learn from Abhishek’s take on modern parenting. To achieve true success as a parent, we must adapt to our child’s needs that are evolving with time instead of sticking to age old traditions which may not be relevant today.