Magic is an art mastered by man since time immemorial. Magicians aim to enthrall audiences, using age-old tricks with a twist or two. Few magicians exist today, who fit the bill of performing artistes. One such among them is Manjunath Hiremath who is the only specialist in comedy magic in the State, having staged more than 6,000 shows in India and abroad.

He is known to ride his bike at over 60 kmph during peak hours from one area to another covering his face with a black cloth. Without violating any traffic norms, he reaches his destination safely. Manjunath is, however, best known for his card tricks, blind-folded tricks, colour changing feathers, flag production, Indian rope trick and tricks of illusion.
A native of Dharwad, Manjunath moved to the City in 1986 and joined the State Bank of Mysore(SBM). “When I was a child, my father used to accompany me to some shows during the car festival in north Karnataka. He honed my skills at home and I started performing at an early age,” he recalls.

“My objective was to give publicity to schemes and products of SBM when I joined.  I would impress upon customers on the advantages and intricacies of deposits, and problems that banks face. I had to put my creativity to test as the concepts were so abstract,” he adds.

The transformation
Manjunath’s journey from traditional to comedy magic was an uphill one. “Of all the challenges, the challenge to make people laugh is the most difficult. I had to make several changes and while making these changes I was forced to deviate from the conventional in order to invent new tricks”.

Explaining the shift, he says: “Over a period of time I noticed the poor response from the audience. They were yearning for something fresh.

“There was urgent need to bring back humour into their lives as they appeared stressed out. This drove me to introduce comedy. The moment my shows begin, the audience starts to laugh and when I’m at my best, they just can’t control themselves. I ensure my audience returns home with a smile”.

Mission: magic
Manjunath considers magic to be his mission by which to serve society. Two decades as a performing artist has enriched coffers of charity organisations.

He has performed for the State Police Benevolent Fund, State Teachers’ Fund, Drought Relief Fund and other fund-raising programmes for private clubs, children at hospitals and orphanages.

“I was greatly influenced by my father, who used to stage shows to raise funds whenever droughts broke out. That selfless objective made me return something to society and I thought staging free shows was the best way to realise it,” he adds.

Manjunath is credited for his entertainment and humour in his orchestra and Nage Habba shows. About his future, he says: “I have plans to start an institute to popularise comedy magic.

“It needs patronage and the government should support the cause. When music and dance can have separate academies, why can’t magic?” he wonders, adding quickly: “this cannot take shape till the time the government treats magic as an art.”

Manjunath can be contacted on 9448063222.