‘Who are you talking to?’: Akshay Kumar reveals chilling moment his 5-year-old son confronted an ‘unseen’ presence; a psychologist weighs in

He added that the moment reinforced his wife’s earlier unease. “My wife said, ‘See, I told you, there’s someone. Even your son is talking to someone. There is something.’” Reflecting on the experience, he acknowledged that while such incidents remain scientifically unproven, they can still leave a strong impression. “So I presume maybe such things do exist, some kind of supernatural power or energy. People say that some individuals are surrounded by positive energy, while others attract negativity. There is always some kind of energy around us,” he said.

While such accounts are compelling, experts often point to psychological explanations, environmental triggers, or the way the human brain interprets ambiguous stimuli. 

So, why do people sometimes feel a presence or hear unexplainable sounds in their homes?

Counselling psychologist Athul Raj tells indianexpress.com, “What people often describe as a presence is the mind reacting to something it cannot immediately explain. At home, we expect familiarity and control. So when a sound or a shift does not fit that expectation, even something small begins to feel significant.”

Most houses carry a range of subtle sounds. Pipes, walls, electrical currents, outside movement. On a normal day, Raj explains, we ignore them. “But in silence or when you are alone, the same sound lands differently. It is rarely the sound itself that unsettles people; it is the pause after it, when the mind starts searching.”

 

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“I see this more when someone is already mentally or emotionally stretched. Stress, fatigue, poor sleep. The nervous system is slightly alert, so it does not let things pass easily. It keeps scanning. So the experience feels external, but often it is the mind trying to make sense of uncertainty,” he explains.

How should we understand situations where young children appear to react to or ‘see’ things that adults cannot?

With children, Raj asserts that it is important to slow down before assigning meaning. Their inner and outer worlds are still blending. So what they feel, imagine, or fear can appear very real to them in the moment.

When a child points to a space or says someone is there, it is not attention seeking. It is an experience. But that experience is usually limited to their own perceptual world. Children do not just imagine more; they believe what they imagine.

Raj explains, “I often see this during times of change. A new environment, a shift at home, or emotional discomfort. The feeling comes first, and the mind gives it a shape. The adult response matters a lot. If there is fear, the child absorbs it. If there is calm grounding, the child settles.”

Why are humans so inclined to interpret unexplained experiences as supernatural?

“We are not comfortable with not knowing,” stresses Raj, adding, “In fact, we are far less comfortable saying ‘I do not know’ than we realise. The mind prefers a clear answer, even if it is unsettling, rather than sitting with doubt. Calling something supernatural gives it form and makes it easier to hold.”

Personal state adds another layer. If someone is already anxious or emotionally strained, they are more likely to read a situation as threatening. “These experiences are rarely described as neutral. They are tense, watchful, uneasy. That tells you the mind is not just observing, it is filling in the blanks with what it already carries,” concludes Raj.