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Abracadabra…! Sorcar’s magic web

Magic is based on science and meant for wholesome entertainment, the father-son duo, P.C.Sorcar Young and Master, tell T. SARAVANAN

Photos: K. Ganesan.

Spell bound P.C. Sorcar (Young) in full flow.

The city played host to a special visitor this week. Though from the billboards that sprouted across the city many would have mistaken him to be the elder magician, P.C.Sorcar Junior. But it was the youngest son of the legendary Jadu Samrat P.C.Sorca r Senior, providing wholesome entertainment to Maduraiites.

Yes, Provas Chandra Sorcar (Young), honoured the city and left those who were lucky to watch his show totally enamoured.

If you imagined him to be a man in a long robe with a magic wand in hand, you are completely off track. He appears on stage in shimmering attires and his movements epitomise finesse of a classical dancer.

“Magic is all about science. There is nothing in the wand or in the robe of a magician, but all in how you present things on stage. Not everyone can become a magician. Only those with high intelligent quotient can excel in this profession,” the eighth generation magician sums it aptly for the Metroplus.

For a man, as multifaceted as him, magic is an additional feather in his cap. It runs in his blood and so never was a farfetched ambition.

“Even a cat in the Sorcar family can perform magic with stupendous success,” he quotes his elder brother.

Lover of science subjects and particularly maths, P.C.Sorcar Young holds a Master’s in Applied Mathematics from Calcutta University. A keen aviator as well, he has both private and commercial pilot’s licence from the Director General of Civil Aviation, Government of India.

Magic is used not only as a surprise element but also as a source of entertainment in all Sorcar shows what with peppy music, dazzling lights, briskly moving girls attired in bright costumes and of course the bedazzling magician.

In today’s world of computers and movies with breathtaking stunts, how can a magic show trapped in theatrical set, costumes and dance appeal to the audience?

“Magic is deep rooted in our culture. The Oriental culture is all about supernatural feats of our ancestors. The magic of magic, in fact, is in the public expectation of a miracle to happen in their life. When something beyond their imagination happens, it acts as sort of wish fulfilment and they render their full patronage,” says Mr. Sorcar (Young).

He was a professional Kathak dancer and also a Sitarist. Most of the melodius music for his magic show – Indrajal – is composed by him. He has even staged dance performances.

“I started performing magic when people looked at me more as a magician than as a dancer. That was the time I realised my potential and became a full-fledged magician and started doing my own shows from 1982,” he recalls.

Sorcar (Young) believes in creating stage illusions to entertain audiences. “Stage illusions are more charming. Every magician starts with close up magic where there are only a handful of people. Performing on stage in front of hundreds of people is truly a big challenge.”

Presence of mind is the most important component of any magician, he avers.

“Once we were in Japan for a show. After the performance I went shopping and some fans came up to me asking me to perform a trick. I was not carrying any of my gadgets. But I saw a dice on the floor, the top face showed the number three. I asked them what would be the number on the opposite side but nobody could answer. I told them it should be four and asked them to check. And so it was. They were happy as they did not know the simple science that numbers on opposite sides in a dice add up to seven. I could do it because of presence of my mind.”

Sorcar Young takes special care about knowing the composing of his audience before he begins a show. In fact that is the most impressive part about him as he designs his own gadgets and includes tricks that would be relevant for that show.

Recipient of several national and international awards, he is a globetrotter who has been all over the world except perhaps to South America, South Africa, Pakistan, China and Bangladesh.

There are not many women in this profession, but those in the Sorcar family have always been competent magicians. But previous generation women did not exhibit their talents on stage.

Only now has P.C.Sorcar (Junior)’s daughter Moubani, taken to stage performances.

Sorcar Young, however, introduces his son Pouroosh alias P.C.Sorcar Master as the only ninth generation magician of the Sorcar family.

His son performing ‘soul through soul’ trick.

The only male heir, he too is a performer with hundreds of stage shows already to his credit.

Sorcar Master is, however, specialising into a full time illusionist. He has mastered in ‘the soul through soul’ illusion where a lady penetrates through his body, and the ‘deadly passthrough’, where the magician passes through the deadly blades of a rotating fan.

A student of Political Science, he is also a professional musician.

A vocalist who has mastered playing keyboard, guitar and drums, Sorcar Master’s first album titled ‘Earth’, an Indian solo English rock album, has already caught the imagination of the youngsters.

CJC, a magician’s society of India has declared him as the best young magician of 2006 and titled him with ‘Jadu Nakshatra’.

The father and to his right his son P.C. Sorcar (Master).

Now in mid fifties, Sorcar (Young)’s future plan is to spread his knowledge through his Magic Institute of India, which was started 10 years ago.

“As of now I don’t have the time to spend. When I retire, I will definitely take up the job,” he beams.

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