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Indian Magicians
Stage (theatre), Stage or street magic has a long history in India. Popular tricks include the Indian rope trick, rope trick, Indian Basket Trick, Indian basket, and Cups and balls, Indian cups and ball. Ancient history The Latin term ''Magi'' was used to refer to Zorastrians during ancient times. The performance of magic and its practice is historical and very ancient. There would be definite yet varied purposes for the practice of magic which evolved where entertainment, tricks, deception, illusion, cheating in games, and fun may have been aimed. Sometimes, in religious context and purpose, it meant to offer social education along with some kind of preaching and healing too. The practice of Magic started to become evident around the beginning of the 18th century in India, and eventually the nation would present some distinct magicians in later years. West Bengal, Kerala, Karnataka, Gujarat, Delhi, Mumbai, Andhra Pradesh and some other parts of India have produced few great ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mohammed Chhel
Mohammed Chhel originally a fakir ( mystic) was a renowned magician of Saurashtra, Gujarat. Mohammed Chhel was born in 1850 in Ningala, a small village and a railway junction in Gadhada Taluka of Bhavnagar district in Saurashtra, Gujarat (India). Basically he was a Pir of a known Dargah and was involved in benevolent works the entirety of his life. Said to have been blessed with supernatural powers, Mohammed Chhel eventually turned magician but his character and nobility were those of a mystic. The message of life he wished to convey to people was that of himself serving society and helping the needy with his magnetic aura and miraculous acts, flavored by his sense of humor. People would unfailingly encounter an experience of Mohammed Chhel's magic and miracles if they were traveling by train and if their luck to strike to come across Mohammed Chhel in the train or at the railway station. Popular incidents of Mohammed Chhel There are plenty of his acts, miracles and occasions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magic (illusion)
Magic, which encompasses the subgenres of close-up magic, parlor magic, and stage magic, among others, is a performing art in which audiences are entertained by tricks, effects, or illusions of seemingly impossible feats, using natural means. It is to be distinguished from Magic (supernatural), paranormal magic which are effects claimed to be created through supernatural means. It is one of the oldest performing arts in the world. Modern entertainment magic, as pioneered by 19th-century magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin, has become a popular theatrical art form. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, magicians such as John Nevil Maskelyne and David Devant, Howard Thurston, Harry Kellar, and Harry Houdini achieved widespread commercial success during what has become known as "the Golden Age of Magic", a period in which performance magic became a staple of Broadway theatre, vaudeville, and music halls. Meanwhile, magicians such as Georges Méliès, Gaston Velle, Walter R. B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ganges River
The Ganges ( ; in India: Ganga, ; in Bangladesh: Padma, ). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international which goes through India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China." is a trans-boundary river of Asia which flows through India and Bangladesh. The river rises in the western Himalayas in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttarakhand. It flows south and east through the Gangetic Plain, Gangetic plain of North India, receiving the right-bank tributary, the Yamuna, which also rises in the western Indian Himalayas, and several left-bank tributaries from Nepal that account for the bulk of its flow. In West Bengal state, India, a feeder canal taking off from its right bank diverts 50% of its flow southwards, artificially connecting it to the Hooghly River. The Ganges continues into Bangladesh, its name changing to the Padma River, Padma. It is then joined by the Jamuna River (Bangladesh), Jamuna, the lower str ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harry Houdini
Erik Weisz (March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926), known professionally as Harry Houdini ( ), was a Hungarian-American escapologist, illusionist, and stunt performer noted for his escape acts. Houdini first attracted notice in vaudeville in the United States and then as Harry "Handcuff" Houdini on a tour of Europe, where he challenged police forces to keep him locked up. Soon he extended his repertoire to include chains, ropes slung from skyscrapers, straitjackets under water, and having to escape from and hold his breath inside a sealed milk can with water in it. In 1904, thousands watched as Houdini tried to escape from special handcuffs commissioned by London's ''Daily Mirror'', keeping them in suspense for an hour. Another stunt saw him buried alive and only just able to claw himself to the surface, emerging in a state of near-breakdown. While many suspected that these escapes were faked, Houdini presented himself as the scourge of fake spiritualists, pursuing a persona ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prahlad Acharya
Prahlad Acharya (born 1973) is a magician, illusionist, escapologist, and stunt performer from Udupi, Karnataka, India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since .... Known for his escape acts, Prahlad has been termed ''Indian Houdini'' by the Indian media. He also performs ventriloquism and shadow play. His show is called ''Maya Jadoo'', which is a 20-member performance of Indian illusions. Prahlad calls his combination of drama and magic "dramagic" He is married to Poornima Acharya, who is also a magician. Achievements Prahlad's performances include: *Escape from Bangalore Central Prison within 10 seconds on 10 December 2001 *Unique Shadow Play Performance at Gili Gili 2001 - the International Magicians' Convention at Udupi in November 2001 *Udupi Golden Chariot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gopinath Muthukad
Gopinath Muthukad (born 10 April 1964) is an Indian Magician (illusion), magician and motivational speaker from Kerala. He employs magic as a medium to convey his messages to public. Muthukad founded the world's first magic academy, The Academy of Magical Sciences, and first magic museum, Magic Planet at Thiruvananthapuram. In 1995, he became the first magician in the world to perform an escape act in the style of Harry Houdini's act of 1904. In the same year, he was awarded the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi, Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi award. Muthukad is the winner of the International Merlin Award instituted by the International Magicians' Society. Muthukad is the first Keralite to be honoured as the celebrity supporter by the UN agency UNICEF, for promoting child right activities in Kerala. In 2021, Muthukad has announced his retirement from professional magic shows and now he has focused his area of work mainly on empowering the marginalized differently-abled communi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sleight Of Hand
Sleight of hand (also known as prestidigitation or ''legerdemain'' () comprises fine motor skills used by performing artists in different art forms to entertain or manipulate. It is closely associated with close-up magic, card magic, card flourishing and stealing. Because of its heavy use and practice by magicians, sleight of hand is often confused as a branch of magic; however, it is a separate genre of entertainment and many artists practice sleight of hand as an independent skill. Sleight of hand pioneers with worldwide acclaim include Dan and Dave, Ricky Jay, Derek DelGaudio, David Copperfield, Yann Frisch, Norbert Ferré, Dai Vernon, Jerry Sadowitz, Cardini, Tony Slydini, Helder Guimarães and Tom Mullica. Etymology and history The word ''sleight'', meaning "the use of dexterity or cunning, especially so as to deceive", comes from the Old Norse. The phrase ''sleight of hand'' means "quick fingers" or " trickster fingers". Common synonyms of Latin and Frenc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Houdini
Erik Weisz (March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926), known professionally as Harry Houdini ( ), was a Hungarian-American escapologist, illusionist, and stunt performer noted for his escape acts. Houdini first attracted notice in vaudeville in the United States and then as Harry "Handcuff" Houdini on a tour of Europe, where he challenged police forces to keep him locked up. Soon he extended his repertoire to include chains, ropes slung from skyscrapers, straitjackets under water, and having to escape from and hold his breath inside a sealed milk can with water in it. In 1904, thousands watched as Houdini tried to escape from special handcuffs commissioned by London's ''Daily Mirror'', keeping them in suspense for an hour. Another stunt saw him buried alive and only just able to claw himself to the surface, emerging in a state of near-breakdown. While many suspected that these escapes were faked, Houdini presented himself as the scourge of fake spiritualists, pursuing a persona ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cups And Balls
The cups and balls is a performance of magic with innumerable adaptations. Street gambling variations performed by conmen were known as Bunco Booths. A typical cups and balls routine includes many of the most fundamental effects of magic: the balls can vanish, appear, transpose, reappear and transform. Basic skills, such as misdirection, manual dexterity, sleight of hand, and audience management are also essential to most cups and balls routines. As a result, mastery of the cups and balls is considered by many as the litmus test of a magician's skill with gimmick style tricks. Magician John Mulholland wrote that Harry Houdini had expressed the opinion that no one could be considered an accomplished magician until he had mastered the cups and balls. Professor Hoffman called the cups and balls "the groundwork of all legerdemain". Instead of cups, other types of covers can be used, such as bowls or hats. The shell game con is a rogue variant of the cups and balls used as a co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aerial Suspension
The aerial suspension, ethereal suspension or broomstick illusion is an illusion in which the performer appears to be suspended in mid-air for some minutes, with either inadequate support or no apparent support of the performer's weight. This trick was first recorded in India and Europe in the early 19th century. Early performers This illusion was first recorded by Thomas Frost in ''Lives of the Conjurors'', 1876, as a performance by an old Brahmin in India in 1828 or 1829. The Brahmin died in 1830 without explaining his trick. He was followed by Sheshal, the Brahmin of the Air, who exhibited the illusion at Madras in 1832, apparently using only a stool, a hollow piece of bamboo, a piece of hide and some beads (''pictured''). Frost thought that it was "probably not very far from the truth" that there were supporting steel rods concealed within the bamboo and the hide, and that the rods were connected with a seat concealed within the performer's robes. The performer was set in plac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vazhakunnam Neelakandan Namboothiri
Vazhakkunnam Neelakandan Namboothiri (8 February 1903 – 9 February 1983), better known as Professor Vazhakkunnam was an Indian performing magician and illusionist from the south Indian state of Kerala. He was one of the earliest practitioners of the art of magic in India and the pioneer of the art in Kerala, which earned him the moniker, "the Father of Magic in Kerala". He is credited with popularising the art form in his home state. Biography Neelakandan Namboothiri was born on 8 February 1903 (Makaram 26, 1078 on Makyeeryam nakshatra as per Malayalam calendar) in Vaazhakunnath Mana in Thiruvegappura, near Pattambi, in Palakkad district of the south Indian state of Kerala to Raman Atithiripad, a witty Brahmin popularly known as Vaazhakkunnam Ateeri and Arya Pathanaadi, as their fourth son. His early schooling included ''Othu'' (study of vedas) after which his elder brother, Vasudevan Namboothiri, himself known as a Bhagavata scholar, taught him Sanskrit and he learne ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
