More than a decade back, Circuses used to be the talk of the town. Amar Circus, The Great Indian Circus, Great Golden Circus, Gemini Circus, The Great Bombay Circus; All of them thrived during the 80’s and 90’s making substantial revenue. Of course, we are talking of an era sans multiplexes and technology. Today, however, very few Circuses remain in India and even if they do, they lack the ability to pull crowd. Road blocks like ban by the Government on child performers and use of animals like Tigers and Lions have left noticeable scars on the once flourishing industry.
As an individual, if one ever wanted to re-live the memories of their childhood, what better way than visiting a Circus? So I decided to visit Rambo Circus who had their tents up at Bandra Reclamation – Mumbai.
Every show at Rambo Circus had artists from Russia, Africa and South-east Asia perform for the Indian audiences. Animals that made their presence in the show were Horses, Dogs and Jumbo – The Elephant. The dwarf clown also tried his antics to tickle your funny bone while the final act of rope swinging from a 4 storey height was death-defying.
There was good use of neon lights to add effect to the stage. However, the stage itself had shrunk to almost half its size from what it used to be in the 80’s and 90’s. Overall, the experience of watching a Circus was beautiful but it still lacked the thrill and excitement that a Lion or a Tiger brought in the circus tent house. In that sense, Rambo Circus is only half successful in reminding one of the old world charm.
They ran 3 shows daily at 1:30pm, 4:30pm and 7:30pm with each show lasting 2 hours. I found the ticket cost a bit expensive with the front rows going for Rs. 600 and the mid rows for Rs. 400 and Rs. 200 respectively. The cheapest ticket for the last row was Rs. 100 (Note: check website for updated prices). Photography was not allowed inside the Circus but I wasn’t complaining as it was in the interest of the animals, the artists and the viewers overall.
In present times, where stress relief is a dire need and where shopping malls & multiplexes seem to be occupying a major pie, some space can also be made to accommodate Circus back into our list of entertainment choices. For this hence, Circuses needs to be promoted in India like it were in the past.
For starters, attempts like school trips to Circuses would garner good number of audiences while also covering cost with bulk bookings.
In a nutshell
One time visit. If you can splurge at a multiplex, a visit to the Circus could be justified. At least these are live performances.
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