Lethality tested: Chairman of Kerala Tourism Development Corporation, Cheriyan Philip examining the originality of the gun used for the Bullet Catching Act by Bengal magician Prince Sil (left).
Thiruvananthapuram: While standing bold showing his bare chest before a 12-bore gun loaded with lethal bullets, Bengal magician, Prince Sil had only one message to the society: let no more apostles of peace become prey to bullets of violence as happened to Mahatma Gandhi, Father of the Nation nearly six decades ago. If the miscreant's bullets took the life of the Mahatma on a January 30th, now the magician's endeavour to bite a fast moving bullet was on yesterday the 30th April.
Destructive: A piece of glass sheet on the way to magician being smashed into a spray of particles by the bullet.
At 4.30pm, beneath the large statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the Gandhi Park here, he stood wearing magic costumes and glittering headgear. Dignitaries including the Leader of the Opposition, Oommen Chandy; Mayor, C. Jayan Babu, Chairman of Indian Council for Gandhian Studies, Dr. N. Radhakrishnan and chieftain of Magic Academy, Gopinath Muthukad sat on one corner of the sprawling open air stage. Hundreds of people thronged around the park. A licensed gun was loaded with a lethal bullet that was duly marked X for identification, by Mr. Philip. Spectators kept turning their eyes between the magician on the stage and the gunner on the opposite side. In between the rifle and the magician was placed a piece of glass.
Bullet hit: Magician trembles as if being hit by a high-speed bullet.
One, two, three… a big shot and shattering sound… the piece of glass was into a heap of broken pellets. And there falls a trembling magician, possibly hit by the bullet, with his face down on the stage. This was enough to shake a few feeble-hearted spectators. Ladies closed their eyes, some bend their head and closed their ears… Only a few seconds went and the magician stood on his feet with that winning smile. His well-trimmed mustache expanded to turn it into a very magical smile of a victorious magician. In his mouth, held was a dark brown coloured metal part of the bullet. It was re-examined by Mr. Philip, who declared that the X mark he has put was there intact.
The bullet is bitten: Magician shows the bullet deftly caught in his mouth.
Applause bestowed over Mr. Sil from all corners. And it was the final shot for the chain of curtain raiser programmes held for Vismayam 2008.
In due honour: Leader of Opposition, Oommen Chandy drapes a shawl around magician Prince Sil prior to the magician's dare-devil feat of Bullet Catching Act.
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