Life under the big top and beyond

As the circus industry heads to its sunset years, a few artistes rekindle the memories of their golden days in the ring and on the trapeze and share their worries about an uncertain future

Lying on his bed cushioned with folded sheets and towels, Babutty, the yesteryear star among the circus artistes of Thalassery, vividly remembers the day on which his life changed forever.

It was the 28th day of September, 2002. A youthful Babutty, dressed in flashy costumes, enthusiastically waved to the crowd from the circus ring. The crowd roared back in appreciation on seeing the superstar of the circus ring. The galleries of the Gemini Circus in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, were packed to capacity.

He was to perform a cross-passing routine, a daring act in which one performer swings up on the ropes while the other comes down, with the help of two catchers set to catch and release the artistes.

Unfortunately, while swinging down, one performer failed to let go of the catcher on time, forcing them to grab Babutty with only one hand. The catcher couldn’t hold him. As his grip loosened, Babutty suddenly slipped out of the catcher’s hand and fell on the side of the net on his back.

A moment of deafening silence ensued. Then the crowd let out a collective gasp. There was panic everywhere. The world came to a standstill for Babutty.

“When I regained consciousness, I could feel a numbness down my spine. I tried in vain to move my limbs,” recalls a worn-out Babutty, who has been bedridden for 23 years. It was poverty that drove him and his elder sister, Sheela, to the circus owned by his neighbour M.V. Sankaran, the founder of Gemini Circus.

“Back in those days, there would be five or six children in a family, and one or two would be sent to the circus. These children would work there, and their parents would raise the other children with the earnings from the circus,” explains N.K. Vijayendran, a senior circus artiste, sitting next to Babutty.