Sometimes the phrase 'movie magic' is taken literally.
Indian cinema's seen its share of magicians, and while (most) actors haven't exactly donned the top hat and white gloves to saw a girl in half or take a rabbit out of a hat, they've done their own share of prestidigitation.
Here's a look at some notable screen jaadugars:
Sanjay Dutt in Aladin
In Sujoy Ghosh's upcoming Aladin, Ritesh Deshmukh plays the new-age Aladin while Amitabh Bachchan plays the genie called Genius.
But every good fairy-tale must have a baddie, and this time it's Sanjay Dutt who plays an evil wizard called Ring Master, a former genie himself.
Hrithik Roshan in Guzaarish
Image: Hrithik RoshanMuch is under wraps about the story of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Guzaarish, but the film is said to be 'inspired by' Christopher Nolan's The Prestige, a story of two rival magicians.
Hrithik Roshan, it is rumoured, will play a magician in the film.
Amitabh Bachchan in Jaadugar
Image: Amitabh Bachchan in JaadugarThis Prakash Mehra film told the story of a magician (Bachchan) out to stop another magician (Amrish Puri) who was posing as a godman and exploiting naive villagers.
Amitabh's Goga was a showman to the core, right from the crazy jackets to the sawing-off-women, and while his tricks might have worked on stage, the film didn't.
Amitabh Bachchan in Toofan
Image: Amitabh Bachchan in ToofanOddly enough, almost immediately alongside Jaadugar came Ketan Desai's Toofan, featuring Bachchan in a double role, as both a masked crimefighting bounty hunter as well as a fun-loving magician and trickster.
Kids loved Bachchan's Shyam Jaadugar, one who could turn wood to rope and coffee to lassi.
Saeed Jaffrey in Ajooba
Image: Saeed Jaffrey in AjoobaIn Shashi Kapoor's lavishly produced kiddie fantasy, Shammi Kapoor played the kind Sultan of Baharistan. And like every medieval court, his too has a magician, played here by Saeed Jaffrey.
Jaffrey's Ameer Baba gives the Sultan a magic sword and drives it into a stone pillar, making room for an Excalibur-like legend.
KS Ramesh in Pushpak
Image: KS Ramesh in PushpakIn Srinivasa Rao Singeetham's classic silent comedy, all the attention is on the wily Kamal Haasan and the diabolical Tinnu Anand, but that's just a conjuror's trick as Haasan falls in love with a magician's daughter, played by Amla.
The magician himself was played by KS Ramesh, ensuring complete believability.
Kay Kay Menon in Drona
Image: Kay Kay Menon in DronaGoldie Behl's massively-budgeted superhero fantasy flop was filmed in Prague, Bikaner, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and Namibia -- and stayed away from actual scriptwriters throughout all those locations.
Anyway, Kay Kay Menon was a part of this Abhishek Bachchan vehicle, playing an evil magician called Riz Raizada.
Comment
article