NO OFF-SEASON: SURFING SWAMI FOUNDATION ATHLETES TAKE THE MONSOON SEASON EAST AND BEYOND
When the southwest monsoon arrives on India’s west coast, the local surfing calendar naturally slows down. For the athletes connected to the Surfing Swami Foundation, however, the months after the Indian Open of Surfing became another stretch of competition, travel and progression.
From Mangaluru to Mahabalipuram, Covelong and eventually Bali, the 2026 monsoon period kept the Foundation’s young surfers and paddlers in competition.
A STRONG FINISH AT HOME
The run began at the NMPA Indian Open of Surfing 2026 in Mangaluru from 28–31 May.
Pradeep Pujar produced one of the standout performances of the championship to win the Surfing Juniors U18 Boys title with a two-wave total of 12.17. It was his first national championship title.
The U18 Girls final also brought two Foundation athletes onto the podium. Saanvi Hegde finished second with 5.67 points, while Aadya Singh finished third with 2.73.
With the west coast moving into the monsoon season, the competition then shifted east.
AADYA’S ROAD TO BALI
One of the most important developments of the season came through Tipi Jabrik’s Grom Patrol India.
At the Mangalore stop in May, Aadya Singh won the U18 Girls division, claiming her first competition victory.
Grom Patrol India ran as a two-stop series, with the second stop taking place at Covelong in July. Qualification for the international Grand Final was based on cumulative series points rather than the second-stop result alone.
Aadya’s win in Mangalore proved decisive. She finished the India series with the U18 Girls qualification place and earned the opportunity to represent India at the Grom Patrol Grand Final in Bali.
ANOTHER PODIUM AT MAHABALIPURAM
The Surfing Federation of India’s Point Break Challenge 2026 was held at Mahabalipuram from 30 July to 1 August.
Saanvi Hegde continued her consistent season by finishing second in the U18 Girls division, adding another national-series podium before the athletes moved on to Covelong.
FOUR FOUNDATION RESULTS AT THE COVELONG CLASSIC
The Covelong Classic followed from 6–8 August as part of the National Surf & SUP Series.
Saanvi once again reached the U18 Girls podium, finishing second with 8.10 points. Aadya finished third with 5.60.
In the U18 Boys final, Pradeep reached another national-series final and finished fourth with 8.73.
The Foundation’s representation also extended into stand-up paddling, where Aakash Pujar finished third in the SUP Technical competition.
It was a weekend that showed the breadth of the Foundation’s athlete pathway across both surfing and SUP.
STEPPING INTO A WSL FIELD
Mahabalipuram then hosted the Shore Temple Classic from 12–16 August, bringing World Surf League QS 2000 and Pro Junior competition back to India.
Pradeep Pujar and Raju Pujar both entered the Men’s QS 2000 field and competed in the Round of 48.
The result itself was only part of the value. National competition provides one level of experience. Sharing a heat with surfers from a wider international field provides another — different pacing, different opposition and another benchmark for progression.
AADYA REACHES THE FINAL IN BALI
At the end of August, Aadya’s Grom Patrol journey reached its international stage.
The Tipi Jabrik’s Grom Patrol Grand Final was held at Halfway, Kuta Beach, Bali from 28–30 August.
Competing in the U18 Girls division, Aadya progressed all the way to the final and finished fourth.
Within a matter of months, her season had moved from a first Grom Patrol victory on her home coast, through qualification across the India series, to an international junior final in Bali.
MORE THAN AN OFF-SEASON
For the Surfing Swami Foundation athlete group — Pradeep Pujar, Raju Pujar, Aakash Pujar, Praveen Pujar, Saanvi Hegde and Aadya Singh — the monsoon period was not simply time between seasons.
It became part of the development pathway.
There were national titles, repeated junior podiums, SUP results, World Surf League exposure and an international junior final. More importantly, there were months of travelling, adapting to different waves, competing against different athletes and learning what is required at each new level.
That is the longer purpose of athlete development: not a single result, but a pathway that allows young surfers and paddlers to keep progressing from local training into national competition and, where possible, onto international stages.
The west coast may have been in its off-season.
The athletes were not.