Akash, son of the world famous magician Jadugar Anand, on Sunday created a new world record by performing an ‘underwater escape’ in 15 seconds, breaking the previous record of 40 seconds set by his father in 1970.
Magician Akash performed the daring underwater escape at Hussain Sagar lake. He was chained, handcuffed, and locked in a wooden box, which was then sealed. The box was dropped into the lake at a point of good depth. Breaking all the chains and handcuffs, Akash came out of the box and swam up to the surface in 15 seconds.
Talking to newspersons here on Sunday, Akash said: “I am very proud of my father, who encouraged me to perform this adventurous fete and helping me succeed in creating a new world record.”
This was the third underwater escape performed in the world. The first escape was performed by Harry Houdini in East River in New York in 1912, where he took one minute to surface.
The second escape was performed by Jadugar Anand in 1970, where he broke free from a box dropped in the Narmada river at Jabalpur in a record time of 40 seconds.
However, the organisers of Sunday’s show claimed that Akash’s feat was a new world record, as the 29-year-old took hardly “twelve seconds” to escape from the wooden box, in which he was chained and handcuffed. Hundreds of people thronged the bund of Hussainsagar lake by 11:30 am to watch the feat.
The chief guest, yesteryear’s actor, Muralimohan, chained and handcuffed Akash before he was put in the wooden box. Later, the assistants of the magician tied ropes around the box and it was gently dropped on to the waters of the lake.
“I am determined to repeat the feat in future,” Akash told the media.