Adaptability is the key of survival so when all the
animals were taken away from from one of India’s
oldest and biggest circuses, Pune-based Rambo Circus thought of revamping their
entire show. Solely based on artists and their crew, the circus is returning to
Goa after nearly 20 years. With 36 artists and five technical staff, the circus
will be performed at Ravindra Bhavan, Margao rather than a tent. “When our
animals were taken away and placed in zoos, we had to rework on our skills to
continue running the circus. It was really sad to see so many circuses close
down but we trained with artists from Russia and Uzbekistan with their
innovative techniques and now the circus features only Indian professionals,”
says Sujit Dilip, the owner of Rambo Circus.
The Rambo circus was started on January
26, 1991, by PT Dilip, the father of Sujit. During the pandemic, when most
circuses in India were completely shut, Rambo Circus had online shows to avoid
shutting down and to help their artists earn a living. From a huge tented arena
to an AC auditorium, will there be enough space for performance? “Over a decade
ago, we performed at Prithvi Theatre in Mumbai which is a 10×10 stage and
Ravindra Bhavan, Margao is quite large compared to that. There is a lot of
logistic involved in setting up the artists and crew because we are not living
in the tent,” explains Dilip.
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Rambo Circus will be showcasing 75 minutes of mesmerising and
breath-taking acts with skating, ladder balance, cube juggling, rolla bolla,
hula hoop and aerial rope among other acrobatics and of course the laughter
filled clown acts that everyone enjoys as kids. Travelling with professional
artists from all across the country, Dilip is proud of the versatility that the
Indian artists have developed to show.
Rambo Circus will be performed live at Ravindra Bhavan, Margao
on September 16 with shows at 12.30 am, 3 pm and 5pm, on September 17 at 10 am,
12 pm, 8 pm and 10pm and on September 18 at 1.30 pm, 4.30 pm, 7.30 pm and 9.30
pm. Tickets are available on bookmyshow.com. The troupe won’t be extending
their shows in Goa as they have to immediately leave for shows in Bangalore
followed by shows in Mumbai. “We are happy with the response for the pre show
ticket sales. We have so far sold 30 per cent of the tickets, which is
considerably higher that the ticket sales we had in Mumbai. If the shows go on
really well then we can plan our next shows during the Christmas holidays,”
says Sujit Dilip.
Rambo
Circus was awarded the ‘Hunar Haat ki Safalta Ke Saathi’ award at the 40th
edition of the Hunar Haat held in Mumbai in April 2022. It is important to
preserve this art form as it has been a piece of every childhood in India and
with its new avatar, there is still a lot more magic to witness.
