A day at the circus!

As you enter the dingy Moore Market area to reach The Great Bombay Circus, you witness an omnipresent sense of doom all around. The parking lot is empty, not counting the circus vehicles, the big, colourful tent has lost its sheen over the years and even the supposed-to-be glittering logo within the tent looks like it’s straight from a low-budget Bollywood film. The Great Bombay Circus is definitely not what it used to be a couple of years ago.It is easy to get comfortable in the red plastic chairs with the hope that the acts are going to compensate for what the eyes have just seen. But as the show begins, the hope takes a mild beating. The clowns are visibly grumpy, yelling out their insignificant jokes in vain.   However, the animal acts were pretty impressive, with the dogs performing fancy balancing routines and the elephant having a ball with his cricket bat. As the acts roll by and the damp dung stench is replaced (to an extent) by a freshly-popped, warm popcorn smell, it was hard not to lose focus. But this was good in a way because the few acts that did make you sit up did their jobs more than just well.Artiste Pooja with her hoola hoops was a delight to watch. No doubt, she was one of the few performers who looked like they took a certain pride in their routines and performed with a touch of showmanship. A natural charmer, she was!The two young dancers on the flying ring made everyone feel bad about the state of their own bodies, as they blithely slid off, climbed up and down and even danced on top of the ring with immense flexibility. The Kenyan performers were hands down the best in the business. Their strength, agility and the complexity of their routine were not the only strong points. What made them click were the uncanny charm they had, their wide grins and dance moves. They were a delight to watch.  The Russian girls showed ample skin and were definitely a pretty sight. Even their skills and tricks with fire, nails and broken pieces of glass were impressive, but they do make you cringe in slight fear (which can be good). The rest of the acts, minus a few young male gymnasts, the jugglers and the dancers, were easy to forget.With over 300 people to feed each day for the three months that they are in the city, how does the management make ends meet? Pradeep Kumar, the manager, says, “Only on weekday afternoons, we have less crowds. But on weekends and in the evenings, we have full houses,” he reveals. “Each aspect of the circus is taken care of and handled by a different department, so everything goes well.”Pradeep’s words definitely do not match the circus experience, but there definitely remains a certain rustic charm to the whole affair. Childhood memories and fears come rushing back with each familiar routine. And it is definitely something that needs to be passed on to each generation, maybe even an effective distraction from Facebook!