P. C. Sorcar Jr.

Last updated

P. C. Sorcar Jr.
PC Sorcar Jr..jpg
Born (1946-07-31) 31 July 1946 (age 77)
NationalityIndian
EducationPh.D. in Psychology
Occupation Illusionist
Political party Bharatiya Janata Party
SpouseJayashree Devi
Children Maneka, Moubani, Mumtaz
Parent(s) P.C. Sorcar
Basanti Devi

P. C. Sorcar Jr. (formal name Prodip Chandra Sorcar; born 31 July 1946 [1] ) is an Indian magician based in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. He is the second son of Indian magician P. C. Sorcar. He is also the recipient of Merlin Award in Magic. [2]

Contents

He holds a doctorate degree in applied psychology from the University of Calcutta, [3] and holds the record of being the highest individual foreign exchange earner in entertainment. [1]

Sorcar contested the 2014 Indian general election from Barasat (Lok Sabha constituency) as the Bharatiya Janata Party candidate and lost to Dr. Kakali Ghosh Dastidar of Trinamool Congress. [4] [5]

Family

His elder brother Prafulla is an Electrical Engineer and younger brother Provas is a commercial pilot. He lost his father, Padma Shri award-winner Protul Chandra Sorcar (P.C. Sorcar Sr.) at the age of 58 due to a massive heart attack in Japan.

Sorcar married Jayashree, daughter of Sri Aroon Kumar Ghosh and Smt. Nilima Devi on 22 May 1972. The couple have three daughters, Maneka, Moubani and Mumtaz. Maneka is also a magician. Moubani is a model and Mumtaz is a Bengali film actress.

His mother Basanti died on 26 December 2009 while he was performing the magic show in Barasat.

Indrajal

Sorcar's troupe, Indrajal, uses 48 tons of equipment, 75 artists, dozens of settings, 12 jadoo girls, psychedelic laser lighting systems, more than 400 brocade dresses, original music by his own orchestra and more than 50 tricks of illusion.

His earliest stage experience involved him assisting his father at Kolkata's New Empire in 1959. His first solo stage performance was held at Siliguri Railway Institute Hall in 1963. [1] Some of his most famous illusions that continue from his father's legend, include: X-Ray Eyes, where he solves mathematical equations, reads Shakespeare lines and even sketches on the spot, blindfolded. Water of India, where a magic jug keeps replenishing itself endlessly and by the end of the show, there's an entire bucket of water filled through that little jug. A dangerous trick where Sorcar Jr himself gets into a box and gets cut in half, assisted by his wife Jayashree. Upon the cut, they even remove any drapes or cover on the middle body, revealing a complete cut between his upper body and lower body.

Sorcar's signature trick is the use of light refraction to convey the impression that large scale objects have vanished. Past performances have included the "disappearance" of the Taj Mahal and the Indore – Amritsar Express. [6]

On 8 November 2000, Sorcar "vanished" the Taj Mahal for two minutes in Kachhpura in Agra. He also made the Victoria Memorial disappear on the 300th anniversary of Calcutta, and vanished a train full of passengers before a large crowd at Bardhaman Junction, West Bengal, India in 1992.

On 1 April 2020 on fool's day, P C Sorcar disappeared Sahid Minar as a tribute to the magicians of Banga Jadu.

Sorcar Jr has cycled at high speed blindfolded from Trafalgar square in London and created a record.

Gili Gili Ge (1989)

Gili Gili Ge is a 1989 children's movie directed by Iswar Chakraborty and produced by Indrajaal Production. This classic Bengali movie stars P.C. Sorcar Jr. in a double role. Both the protagonist and the antagonist characters are enacted by him. Utpal Dutt, Santosh Dutta, and Sreela Majumdar also acted in the movie. The movie, a favorite among children and elders, features the charismatic screen presence of Sorcar Jr. and spectacular visual effects.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taj Mahal</span> Marble mausoleum in Agra, India

The Taj Mahal is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan to house the tomb of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal; it also houses the tomb of Shah Jahan himself. The tomb is the centrepiece of a 17-hectare (42-acre) complex, which includes a mosque and a guest house, and is set in formal gardens bounded on three sides by a crenellated wall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mumtaz Mahal</span> Empress consort of the Mughal Empire from 1628 to 1633

Mumtaz Mahal was the empress consort of Mughal Empire from 1628 to 1631 as the chief consort of the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan. The Taj Mahal in Agra, often cited as one of the Wonders of the World, was commissioned by her husband to act as her tomb.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">P. C. Sorcar</span> Indian magician (1913–1971)

Protul Chandra Sorcar was an Indian magician. He was an internationally active magician throughout the 1950s and 1960s, performing his Indrajal show before live audiences and on television. Sorcar died of a heart attack at the age of 57 in Asahikawa, Hokkaidō, Japan, on 6 January 1971, where he was performing. P.C. Sorcar is known also as P.C. Sorcar Senior, is renowned as "Father of Modern Indian Magic".

Manick Sorcar is an Indian American artist, animator, engineer, and laserist. Sorcar is an artist in various media, including fine arts, cartoons, animations, laser arts, and world-touring stage shows with live action mixed with laser animation. His animated films, all based on children's stories from India, have won prestigious awards at international film festivals and been broadcast on the Public Broadcasting Service for 25 consecutive years. His laser arts and animation in various forms have won global awards from the International Laser Display Association.

The Indian rope trick is a magic trick said to have been performed in and around India during the 19th century. Sometimes described as "the world’s greatest illusion", it reputedly involved a magician, a length of rope, and one or more boy assistants.

<i>Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story</i> 2005 Indian film

Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story is a 2005 Indian historical drama film directed by Akbar Khan. The film starred Kabir Bedi, Sonya Jehan, Manisha Koirala, Arbaaz Khan, Vaquar Shaikh, Rahil Azam and Pooja Batra in the title roles. The film was released on 18 November in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prahlad Acharya</span> Magician

Prahlad Acharya is a magician, illusionist, escapologist, and stunt performer from Udupi, Karnataka, India. Known for his escape acts, Prahlad has been termed Indian Houdini by the Indian media. He also performs ventriloquism and shadow play. His show is called Maya Jadoo, which is a 20-member performance of Indian illusions. Prahlad calls his combination of drama and magic "dramagic"

<i>Conjuring</i> (book) Illustrated book by James Randi

Conjuring is an illustrated book about conjuring, or magic, by James "The Amazing" Randi, who himself was a magician and escape artist. Drawing on his extensive knowledge and experience in the field, Randi offers a series of brief biographies of a variety of noteworthy magicians and their unique styles, including Harry Houdini, Chung Ling Soo, Harry Blackstone Sr., Harry Blackstone Jr., Howard Thurston, and many others. He also provides an overview of several genres of magic such as stage magic, escapology, and mentalism, and of specific tricks such as the bullet catch. Reviews of the book were mainly positive.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Origins and architecture of the Taj Mahal</span> History and construction of the Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal represents the finest and most sophisticated example of Indo-Islamic architecture. Its origins lie in the moving circumstances of its commission and the culture and history of an Islamic Mughal empire's rule of large parts of India. The distraught Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned the project upon the death of one of his favorite wives Mumtaz Mahal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magic in India</span> Indian magic history

Stage or street magic has a long history in India. Popular tricks include the rope trick, Indian basket, and Indian cups and ball.

Ek Bar Bolo Uttam Kumar is a 2009 comedy Bengali film directed by Chinmoy Roy. The film stars Parambrata Chatterjee, Mumtaz Sorcar, Soumitra Chatterjee, Sabitri Chatterjee, Piyali Munshi and Diganta Bagchi. This film is Chinmoy Roy's directorial debut and that of magician PC Sorcar Junior’s youngest daughter Mumtaz Sorcar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mumtaz Sorcar</span> Indian actress (born 1986)

Mumtaz Sorcar is an Indian actress and model. She is the daughter of the magician PC Sorcar Junior and Joysri Sorcar. Mumtaz started her career with a music video for singer Mehreen from Bangladesh. She played in the 2010 Bengali film 033, directed by Birsa Dasgupta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moubani Sorcar</span> Indian actress

Moubani Sorcar is an Indian actress and painter. She is daughter of magician P. C. Sorcar Jr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maneka Sorcar</span> Indian magician

Maneka Sorcar is a magician from India and elder daughter of P. C. Sorcar Jr. She worked as an assistant to her father in several shows and till March 2012 she had performed over 250 magic shows. Sorcar is married to Susmit Ranjan Haldar. In 2004, Maneka teamed up with her father to create an illusion of a disappearing Taj Mahal, followed by the appearance of a bicycle ride across the surface of Dal Lake.

<i>Ashchorjyo Prodeep</i> 2013 Indian film

Aschorjyo Prodeep is a 2013 Indian Bengali-language film directed by Anik Dutta. The film is based on a short story by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay. It is Dutta's second feature film as a director. The film's theatrical trailer was released on YouTube on 26 October 2013 while the film released on 15 November 2013 in Kolkata. The film deals with the unfulfilled aspirations of an everyday couple whose dreams never become reality and as they try hard to excel in life. Anilabha discovers a magic lamp from which a genie emerges and is able to take him to unseen heights in life that he never reached before and also life of extreme luxury and fortunes. How they adjust and cope with their new-found lives forms the rest of the story.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aerial suspension</span>

The aerial suspension, ethereal suspension or broomstick illusion is an illusion in which the performer appears to be suspended in mid-air for some minutes, with either inadequate support or no apparent support of his or her weight. This trick was first recorded in India and Europe in the early 19th century.

P. C. Sorcar, Young is an Indian magician based in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. He is the third son of Indian magician P. C. Sorcar. He is the winner of the Samurai Crown for the Best Magic Show in Japan, the Golden Dragon for the Best Magic Show in China, and other international awards.

Sorcar is the surname of:

Sati-un-Nissa, also known as Sati-un-nisa, Sati al-Nisa Khanam, Sati-al-Nesāʾ was an Indo-Persian physician, a lady-in-waiting to Mumtaz Mahal, mahaldar of Shah Jahan, and tutor to their daughters Jahanara Begum and Gauhar Ara Begum.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "The magical world of P C Sorcar". Sunday TOI. 25 March 2001. Retrieved 25 February 2009.
  2. "Merlin Award Recipients". www.magicims.com. Retrieved 25 February 2009.
  3. Sankar, Anand (12 July 2008). "By the sleight of my hand". Business Standard . Retrieved 25 February 2009.
  4. "Magician P C Sorcar (Jr) to contest Barasat MP seat as a BJP candidate", The Times of India , 27 February 2014.
  5. "Magician P C Sorcar gets bail over Derogatory remarks against Mamata Banerjee". IANS. news.biharprabha.com. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
  6. Gupta, Subhrangshu: Into the magic world of P.C. Sorcar, The Tribune, 15 April 2001.