Magic And A Mission – Tadpoles.in Aug 25th 2014

He can bring you back to life after beheading you or putting a sword through your neck. He can unshackle a handcuff in a matter of seconds. Wait, that’s not all, he can also levitate.

Whenever Phillip Tiju Abraham or popularly known as ‘Magician Philip’ hits the stage, he mesmerises his audience with not only his wizardry, but also his messages.

A Keralite who started magic at the age of 12 is now known as the PC Sorcar of South India. But unlike other magicians of our country, Phillip gives his audiences something more, a wholesome experience of wizardry and a message that resonates strong for years to come.

 “I saw a magic show when I was 9. I was inspired by the performance. At the end of the show, the organisers were distributing magic books, I got one. My first lessons were from that very book,”said Phillip who is also an IT Engineer.

In a span of one year, Philip made the best use of his book and learned the tricks. But he was yet to perform in front of an audience.

“My first live performance was at my school in front of about 40-50 students and a few teachers. It went very well. I was an instant hit.”

Soon, the doors to the world of magic opened wide for Phillip. The great Gopinath Muthukad, known for conveying messages to the society through magic took Philip under his wing.

The sorcery was at its peak.

“I have been trained by many great magicians. Rajamurthi, Subhash and of course Muthukad Sir to name a few,” said Philip.

Philip gives a vivid account of his first few tricks. The Mind Reading Trick in which audiences were asked to write their names on a piece of paper and they were put inside a box.  Without opening the cheats, Philip would know the name. Then, one of his most popular trick was, the breaking and restoring a match-stick trick.

“It is simple but nevertheless awe-inspiring.”

However, it was not until October 2010 that Philip became a household name in South India. Much like his guru, Philip too was keen on solving social problems.

The Dream of Gandhiji was the answer.

“I wanted to spread the message of Gandhi Ji through my magic. He has changed the world. I believe I have touched many lives with my performances,” said Philip.

The Dream of Gandhi Ji campaign was an idea to spread messages of peace and social harmony. It was a show in which audiences experienced life values and messages through magic.

It started on Oct 2, 2010 and ended on Jan 30, 2011.

Philip’s performances have been lauded by many states. In 2012, he received the Certificate of Honour from the Magic Academy of Bangalore. Earlier in 2007, he was given the perfect performer award by the Magic Academy of Trivandrum.

When asked about how he mastered his tricks, Philips had just one answer – Practice

“Just like a sportsperson, a magician needs to practice day in and day out.”

He also said that magic, unlike other countries has not grown in India because of lack of initiative. It is like running a business, he says.

“You have to be your own promoter.”

One of his favourite tricks is the Linging Ring trick in which he joins two rings without using his hands. However, his fans are always bedazzled by The Money Trick.

“In India if you do anything with money, people love it,” says Philip. In this trick he creates an illusion in which he starts multiplying money. The audiences jump out of their seats.

Currently, Philip performs most of his shows in Bangalore. He is also working for an IT company as a code writer.

His penchant for magic led him to develop two magic portals – indianmagicians.com andworldofmagicians.com, websites in which an aspiring magician can find information like magic courses, societies, history, competitions and tours.

His message for young magicians is straight and simple

“The magic behind a successful magician is hard-work. The trick is not to take short-cuts,” he said.

 

 

Article by Aninda Das, Tadpoles.in
http://tadpoles.in/magic-mission/