Reviving Indrajal memories for Kolkata

The nip in the air is palpable, so is the gradual coming of the much-awaited winter. The summer and the heat have had a rather lengthy spell this year. Hopefully, that is coming to an end, and the merry cold season is going to take over.

- MANAS DAS

And as soon as there is a dip in the mercury, young and old of this city happily trace, among other joyful paraphernalia of this season, that their city has begun to be mesmerised by spells of magic and illusion. A Prospero has arrived, and he is drawing crowds by the hundreds with his scintillating indrajal skills. The teeming audience stares spellbound at the grand spectacle of the vanishing of the giant Statue of Liberty or gapes at the coming alive of an Egyptian mummy thanks to the spectacular art and skills of the magic maestro OP Sharma Junior.

Apart from traditional tricks like converting a handkerchief into a bird or bringing out laces or flowers from an empty vase or can, there are many innovative demonstrations of hypnotic or tantalising razzmatazz that are simply stunning to say the least. The show offers thrilling presentations like the "Drill of Death", "Tilasmi Ghada of Kamarupa" and "Sliced Lady of America". The ace indrajal entertainer OP Sharma Jr is reminding old-timers of this city of those days, decades back, when the enjoyment of winter could not be complete without a visit to a magic show.

Sharma's arrival in the city has breathed new life into Kolkata's tryst with indrajal and illusion. The arch wizard's shows have been running houseful for the last few days at Mahajati Sadan, and the big cutouts of the magician at the front gate take visitors and passersby down the memory lane to the mind-boggling world of make-believe invoked by legends of the golden era of Indian magic.