In this era of social media, when people are prone to scrolling the days away, the circus culture seems to have made a comeback. Ajanta Circus, eastern India’s biggest travelling spectacle, is currently sprawled across Park Circus Maidan, marking its return to the venue after 12 long years on its 50th anniversary.
From death-defying acrobat acts to gymnasts from various parts of the world, who regaled even Gen Alpha kids, the circus proved that the old-school charm is unstoppable — even as the ban on live animals compels the show to be more skill-based rather than wild spectacle.
Ajanta Circus is set to run till January 31, bringing back the same nostalgia that Kolkatans grew up with. My Kolkata attended the 1pm show, which is running daily, with two more shows from 4pm and 7pm.
The afternoon kicked off with a dynamic and fun aerial acrobatic act that the ringmaster introduced as a ‘dangerous trapeze’.
Gymnasts and other performers from places like Mongolia, Manipur and Africa are travelling with the circus this time.
An African troupe enthralled the audience with several acrobatic acts, coordinated showcases with straw hats and Afro dance moves that gave the circus a refreshing vibe.
Circus attendees cheered for an Ethiopian acrobat who performed with a large cube-shaped apparatus as part of a ground act.
Some audience members shuddered as a Mongolian gymnast, whom the ringmaster called ‘the boneless girl’, balanced her entire body on a steel stand using only her teeth.
Jiarul Haq, a 35-year-old clown from a village in Assam, sat inside the ring and enjoyed the various acts with a fellow ‘joker’.
The balancing acts kept on rolling.
Aerial silks and Sunidhi Chauhan’s Aa Zara song made for a perfect live flying act.
Not ninjas or swordsmen, a Manipuri woman wielded swords and chopped fruits on others’ hands wearing a blindfold.
Not just one or two. This performer balanced and twirled her body using 25 hula hoops at one point!
Among the traditional circus acts was sword-swallowing — an unparalleled showcase which requires strenuous physical control and practice.
No circus is complete without a clown act and these jokers — one from Assam and the other from Dum Dum, brought in peals of laughter, just like the old days.