Moorkkoth Vengakkandi Sankaran ( ml, മൂർക്കോത്ത് വേങ്ങക്കണ്ടി ശങ്കരൻ; 13 June 1924 – 23 April 2023), popularly known as Gemini Shankaran ( ml, ജെമിനി ശങ്കരൻ), was an Indian circus owner, businessperson and one of the pioneers of the circus industry in India. Sankaran was a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

Biography

Shankaran was born to Kavinisheri Raman Nair and Moorkoth Kalyaniyamma on 13 June 1924, in Kolassery, a village in Kannur district, in the south Indian state of Kerala. His schooling was limited to 7th standard, after which he studied

Kalaripayattu Kalaripayattu (; also known simply as Kalari) is an Indian martial art that originated in modern-day Kerala, a state on the southwestern coast of India. Kalaripayattu is known for its long-standing history within Indian martial arts, and is ...

and

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclist ...

from

Keeleri Kunhikannan Keeleri Kunjikannan (1858–1939) was an Indian martial arts trainer and gymnast. He was one of the earliest circus owners in India. Life Kunhikannan was born in Thalassery in 1858. He was the gymnastic instructor of BEMP school, Thalassery. Hi ...

before starting a small time grocery store. The grocery business failed and Sankaran joined the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

where he worked until the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After leaving the military, he joined the ''Boss Lion Circus'' as a

trapeze artist A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes or metal straps from a ceiling support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances. Trapeze acts may be static, spinning (rigged from a single point), swinging or flying, an ...

. In 1951, he purchased ''Vijaya Circus'' for a sum of INR 6000 and renamed it as ''Gemini Circus''. He later purchased ''Jumbo Circus''. Sankaran, as one of the pioneers of the India circus industry, wrote his autobiography, ''Malakkam Mariyunna Jeevitham'', which was published in 2012. His life is also recorded in another biography, ''Gemini Shankaran and the Legacy of Indian Circus''. The

honoured him with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Sankaran was married to Shobhana, and the couple had two sons, Ajay Shankar and Ashok Shankar, and a daughter, Renu Shankar. He died on 23 April 2023, at the age of 98.

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* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shankaran, Gemini 1924 births 2023 deaths 20th-century Indian businesspeople Circus owners Indian businesspeople Malayali people Businesspeople from Kerala

Biography

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Further reading

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