Magic of Anand

Jadugar Anand’s Magic Chat !

Chatting with Jadugar Anand is quite an experience, says W. SREELALITHA
The CHARMER Jadugar Anand
I expect him to produce a red rose out of nowhere, to welcome me. Sadly, nothing happens. He just smiles, and I take my seat.
Sans the make up and the magician’s glittering garb, it is impossible to associate Jadugar Anand with those mind boggling tricks he performs on the stage. But when he begins talking, his stories and views are as engaging as his shows.
The only son of a Brahmin family in Jabalpur, he has been fascinated with magic ever since he was seven. He recalls being smitten by street performers near his primary school who produced laddoos and jalebis out of nowhere. “I was interested not in the trick, but in the sweets that came to me free of cost. When they moved, I missed them, and decided to get into magic myself. I went in search of magicians, and swamis who claimed to perform ‘divine miracle’.”
In Class II, he entertained classmates by drinking concentrated nitric acid and consuming tube lights.
Family objects
Despite objection from family, he continued to exchange clues with amateurs, and read voraciously, books on magic. As a teenager, he learnt hypnotism from Rajneesh Osho. “In turn, I taught him magic. It was more like a barter system,” he smiles.
“Around 16, I chanced upon a film on Harry Houdini’s underwater escape, and told myself ‘I can do this too’.” And, did it! At 18, he freed himself from the fetters and surfaced out of the Narmada River in a mere 40 seconds, a world record then. (Houdini did it in six minutes; PC Sorcar in 90 seconds, and more recently, his son Akash in 15 seconds.) The feat shot him to global fame. And, Anand is 49 years old in the industry!
What does magic mean to him? “It is a pleasing and amusing art of exhibition of skill and practice, where the laws of Nature are seemingly set aside for the sake of innocent entertainment.”
Why is magic always a family business, especially in India? “Well, earlier, it was seen as a tradition of the family; And, it was also easy to keep the secret of the profession in tact. However, this is changing now. It must come out of the family.”
Incidentally, Anand, also the national president of the All India Magic Federation, says that the number of the members from across the globe exceeds 16,000. He’s planning to set up an Academy of Magic in every State capital.
Russian circus and Indian magic are of great repute across the globe. No other art brings in so much of foreign currency as does magic, he claims. Sadly, there are no great facilities to learn this art, nor is there a social status in it. “The State and Central Government should lend an encouraging hand, so that the new generation can learn it. Prospective magicians should not go through the difficulties I went through,” he says.
Ask him what is important for magic, and he says that “with any performing art, determination to pass the beginning fight is vital. Timing is important, and presentation is its soul”.
Why the make-up?
What’s with the make-up? “Oh, you do not want to look at a face that is not comfortable to the eyes, for two to three hours, do you?” he asks laughing. And is it true that you hide all your tricks in those iridescent sleeves? “Ha ha ha. It is true of the small time magicians who perform by the road side. But, we consider a gorgeous dress as a formal wear to our profession.”
So, what is the future of magic? He smiles. “I recently went through a 100-year-old book on magic, and it raised the same question. Magic creates the kind of relaxation that no other art does. The future looks wonderful because curiosity will remain so long as the human race exists.”
* * *
Abracadabra…
Jadugar Anand’s magic show cast a spell
It was inexplicably crowded. But then, it was to be expected. It was Jadugar Anand’s show. The posters splashed over the city had announced that he would make a replica of the Statue of Liberty disappear, and make an elephant appear from nowhere!
The show began with psychedelic lights, pulsating music and the Book of Magic. The huge book introduced us to world famous magicians, but the slot for India was empty. As the pages were turned again, Anand appeared in a shimmering outfit, to thunderous applause.
Anand pulled one trick after another from his sleeve. An empty box yielded flowers, endless reams of cloth, a dog, and finally a gorgeous girl. And, of course the white doves. There were some acts that were undiluted fun. For instance, when the magician came out unscathed through a vicious-looking pedestal fan running at a medium speed. Or when, a few pretty girls walked right through Anand! We watched as a girl lay unsupported, midair, but for her head that rested on a pole. Anand then repeated the feat, this time with a teenage volunteer from the audience.
Nice touch
And, this time around, there was no pole for the head. The girl seemed deep in slumber, unaware she was lying on nothing. Later, giving the girl a framed photo of her during the trick was a nice ‘magic’ touch. Also great fun was the combination of ‘science and magic’, where characters on a screen just walked out of it to greet us in person.
Now for the promise! A huge replica of the Statue of Liberty on the stage was partially hidden by a cloth. The voice of celebrated magician David Copperfield filled the hall, declaring that we were about to witness a fantastic trick. And, we did! Amidst a smoky haze, the Statue disappeared. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Had I imagined it? But no, the statue was, indeed gone. Then the reverse happened, and from nowhere, a huge elephant appeared on stage, and walked between the aisles to show us that it was a real animal.
They say magic is all about time. If that were so, those we had witnessed on stage were the gurus of time management. But, there must have been something more to it. Someday, I must ask the man himself…

Magic By Jadugar Anand

He probably can create money out of thin air. However, people are only too willing to pay him. You will be, too, if you read all he can do.Jadugar Anand is back again this year, performing two shows daily from 5th April to 18th May, at the Hari Hara Kala Bhavan. The first show starts at 4:00pm and the second one at 7:00pm.Anand’s show in Hyderabad kickstarted on 25th March with a fire escape show at NTR Stadium by his son Akash, a member of Anand’s crew. Akash performed the stunt, wherein he was chained with 20 locks and thrown into a hige burning haystack. He came out of the flames after releasing himself from the chains, unscratched. This stunt was followed by blindfolded bike rides in the city, covering 21 kilometres from Hari Hara Kala Bhavan via Sangeet Theatre, Mettuguda, Tarnaka, OU campus, RTC X Roads, Koti, Nampally, Tank Bund, Ranigunj and Paradise, back to Hari Hara Kala Bhavan. The stunt was performed to highlight safe driving and create traffic awareness.Jadugar Anand is the President of the All-India Magic Federation, which has nearly 60,000 members from among professional and amateur magicians and magic lovers. He has over 28,000 shows to his credit, all over the world. A professional for 36 years, Anand has travelled far and wide. Over the years he has innovated a lot of tricks and earned the reputation of being the fastest magician in the world.Anand hails from Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh. He learnt hypnotism from spiritual guru Rajneesh (Osho), who also hails from the same place. He learnt magic at the age of 7, apparently inspired by street magicians, who used to get him laddoos from nowhere.Anand has performed many new magic tricks, including making the Statue of Liberty and the Taj Mahal disappear, making an elephant appear from thin air, and bringing characters of movies alive from the screen and sending them back. During the month-long show, get to see some stunning tricks from the colorful mayalok of the Jadugar.