Thiruvananthapuram: He once said, “When asleep I breathe magic; when awake I work magic.” He is P.C. Sorcar Senior, a magical luminary widely respected as the ‘father of Indian magic’. 23rd of February marks the 98th birth anniversary of the doyen. He was born on 23 February 1913 in a middle-class family in the village of Ashekpur in Tangail district, now part of Bangladesh. Attracted to magic early, he learned magic from Ganapati Chakravarti. His debut show was as a school student. A star who knew well the calculations of magical manipulations, Sr. Sorcar possessed Honours in Mathematics. Magic being his heart and soul, he once changed his family surname ‘Sorcar ’ into the English word ‘Sorcerer ’. At least 20 books about magic were authored by him in English, Bangla and Hindi. A set of illusions namely, X-ray eye, sawing a human body and water of India are still known with his name.
He could perform in over 70 countries. Many prizes including the Phoenix Award, USA; German Goldbar and the Golde Laurel Garland awards and the Dutch Tricks Prize were bestowed upon him. Sr. Sorcar died on 6 January 1971 in Japan, but continues to be a living source of inspiration for generations of native magicians.
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