If you adore fitness, you have one thing in common with Sunny Deol. If you also adore teddy bears, you have two. And it’s the latter that would probably strike most readers as unexpected, even if it’s also what more people have in common with the hulking star than his strapping physique. So, what is it about soft toys that contribute to their age-defying, stereotype-shattering appeal?

Actor Sunny Deol with his soft toys. File pics

What makes them such comforting bedfellows? As Dr Nahid Dave, psychiatrist at Thought Matters, explains, “As children grow up, they turn to a transitional object — typically a preferred toy — that helps them to transition from their dependency on the mother or the primary caregiver to self-soothing. As we grow older, we learn to soothe our own emotions. But we also develop different attachment styles and different personalities. For some people, the presence of a transitional object offers a sense of calmness.”