'Prediction Magic' dumbfounds Dubai

Magical maestro's 20-day UAE tour begins with a magic thriller.

Art of Prediction: Gopinath Muthukad displaying the prediction paper carrying signatures of seven dignitaries, on the first day of the stunt.

Dubai: One of Gopinath Muthukad’s most baffling numbers, the ‘Prediction Magic’ literally floored hundreds of people in daylight here. The show was held at the premises of the highly secured UAE Exchange’s Al Ghusais branch.

On 16th of March, in front of hundreds of people who thronged, the magician in black suits stepped forward, opened the doors and entered an aluminium cage. In no time, the door was perfectly locked with the magician inside.

From within the cage, the magician wrote his prediction. During this critical action, tension was vivid on his face. At occasions, he was seen plunged into deep contemplation.

After completing his writing, he folded the paper and handed it over to one of the dignitaries. If the first dignitary placed the folded prediction inside a small box, locked it and kept its keys in his own pocket, there were six more doing the same, but using bigger boxes.

All the seven people, who had earlier put their signatures and UAE Exchange’s official stamps on the prediction paper, left the venue taking away the keys of corresponding boxes. First part of the amazing show concluded at this point of time. The boxes rested inside the heavy security locker of the company and the magician walked out of the cage.

Next day, in addition to the custodians of the keys, led to the venue were a good number of inquisitive people. But the place for the chief performer of the entire stunt, Mr. Muthukad, was still inside the locked cage. Chief attraction of the programme, the boxes, were first retrieved from the locker. Dignitaries lined up and checked the seals and knots of the clothe cover. Satisfied, they opened the boxes one after the other.

Finally, the smallest box was opened and the prediction paper taken out. President of the Indian Media Forum, E.M. Ashraf along with others, first verified and ensured that their signatures were correct. When he read the magician’s prediction over microphone, it was thoroughly amazing to find each prediction coincide word by word with the headlines of the newspapers. Spectators’ praise was expressed through a huge applause. An elated magician was now jumping out of the cage where he stood all these time without a single interference. He was at the pinnacle of jubilation, but was down to earth to claim no supernatural power behind his act. “It’s pure magic trick perfected through perennial practice” he said to the media.

“Incredible, but indispensable. Ambiguous, yet amazing. Evoking such thoughts in the minds of reporters and other spectators, Indian magician Gopinath Muthukad came through flying colours in his ‘headline prediction performance’…”. If these were the beginning sentences of a Khaleej Times report on the next day, the tone and tenor of other media reports were not so different.

Predicting the lead news: Muthukad sets a record

Total number of newspapers, and the transparency and reliability of the magical method adopted has made it a record.

Winning moment: Gopinath Muthukad flanked by dignitaries, displaying a sheet of paper on which he has written his exact prediction of lead news in 10 newspapers. From left: Superintendant of Police, M. Padmanabhan; M.L.A., M. Umman; District Collector, M.C. Mohandas and Chairman of the Malappuram District Co-operative Bank, U.A. Latheef.

Malappuram: Gopinath Muthukad has set a world record by predicting the lead news of 10 newspapers at a single instance, by way of his amazing feat held here successfully during 24th and 25th of September. His feat has become a record by way of the total number of newspapers tried and the transparency and reliability of the method adopted for the entire performance.

Muthukad’s first endeavour in the area of prediction magic was during the parliament elections of Thiruvananthapuram constituency when he precisely predicted the votes earned by three major candidates. Previously he has repeated a more convincing version of prediction technology in Palakkad and exactly predicted the lead news in 6newspapers.

At Malappuram, the challenge was more as his attempt was upon 10 leading dailies. “To predict what would become lead of the paper, is an impossible task for even people attached to the media. To make this guess accurately and to follow the parlances of different newspapers are among the major challenges. Above all remains the duty of the magician to make his performance imposing as well as transparent and trustworthy for the viewers”, Mr. Muthukad said on his latest achievement.

Palakkad witnesses enthralling three-day magic fair

Thrilling finish of the Prediction Magic found these expressions of sheer enjoyment shared by the chief dignitaries including (from left) M.L.A., Mr. K.K. Divakaran; District Panchayat President, Ms. Subaida Ishaq; Justice N. Rajagopal and Superintendant of Police, Mr. Vijay Sakhare.

Palakkad: It was a rocking magic fair at this town famous for the rock gardens of Malampuzha dam and the UN-conserved Heritage Streets of Kalpathi. The three-day magic festival organized by the Magic Academy could earn remarkable response from the public.

Curtain raisers
A thrilling endeavour to ‘forecast today, the news headlines of tomorrow’s dailies’ was held through two days as a prelude to the event. The first day found the magician writing his predictions on a piece of white paper and handing it over to the dignitaries. Dignitaries put their signatures and seals on the paper, folded it and enclosed it with several boxes. The astounding act was held at the premises of the District Cooperative Bank’s head office. The final box was then put inside the chest of the safe locker in the bank’s strong room.
On the very next day, the dignitaries came with their keys and retrieved the prediction box from the bank locker. One after the other, they opened each box. Finally, the prediction paper was taken out. Folds, stappler pins, signatures and seals were found intact.

The paper was then unfolded and the prediction was read out by Justice N. Rajagopalan. Spectators’ amazement found no bounds when the magician’s prediction was exactly the same as the news headlines appeared in six leading dailies.
Furthering their surprise was the fact that throughout the performance, magician was locked inside an iron cage and hadn’t made any contact with the prediction paper or the boxes.

Three-day magic festival had daytime shows for bulk buyers including educational and charitable organizations. Evening shows at 6.30pm were open for the public. Each day found a packed house at the Town Hall.

Proceedings from the Magic Festival will be used for establishing an asylum to shelter traditional north Indian street magicians who fight with fate to make a living.