Internationally acclaimed circus clown Biju Nair, who recently participated in a game show, talks to Muskan Jain about the dying circuses in India
From stilt walkers to jugglers to drummers to aerialists, tightwire walkers and clowns and daredevil circus artistes, who made our childhood more fun, are on the verge of extinction — and with them the circus platform — with only 10-15 circuses operational out of 300 in India a couple of decades back. Those who are still working to keep the art form alive are paid peanuts due to lack of investment and the viewership decreasing each year.
However, one person — Biju Nair — head clown of Rambo Circus in Maharashtra who does shows across Mumbai — is working round clock as a clown to keep the art form and circus alive by making children laugh at his antics.
“There are many families who come with their children to watch a circus but it is never house full. When we have film stars and their children in the audience, we feel honoured. We learn new tricks and bring innovation into our acts by watching the videos of other clowns from across the country and keep the art form alive,” Nair says.
Nair, who has been working in Rambo Circus for more than 40 years, recently participated in the game show Sabse Smart KaunIJ on Star Plus to win some money to help the artists in the circus. Unfortunately, he lost in the last round along with all the money he had won.
“My daughter, who is now pursuing her MBA, wanted a laptop. I wanted to set aside some money from the win to buy it. My salary is Rs 15,000 a month, I only spend Rs 1,000 per month as EMI, the rest has to go to look after my family. Earlier, I used to drink and smoke but quit as I had to pay for my children’s education. I also have to buy a house,” Nair tells you.
He considers his loss as his victory for the kind of experience he had gained on the show and sharing his life on such a big platform.
“It was a once in a lifetime experience to be on the show and to be able to share my experience. I am grateful for the opportunity to be part of such a big platform. Unlike other game shows, this didn’t require much knowledge just common sense which makes it difficult,” Nair tells you.
Hailing from Kerala, Nair ran away from his village at the age of eight to come to Mumbai. He didn’t find work immediately. Someone at the Apollo Circus saw him and gave him the job of a guard.
“I was fascinated by the clown’s acts and tried my hand at it. I got rejected everywhere because of my skin colour. But I never gave up and learnt the tricks by watching other clowns,” Nair recalls.
Finally, the owner of Rambo Circus saw a spark in him. Slowly and steadily, Nair carved a niche for himself. So much so that he is now an internationally recognised face.
His dedication to his work can be gauged from an incident. A few years back, Nair got a call asking him to rush home since his brother was very ill. “I refused. I didn’t want to leave a show mid-way. When I reached home, he had passed away,” Nair says.
According to him, it is the owner of Rambo Circus, Sujith Dilip, who has kept the circus alive.
“There are many circuses who can’t even pay the artistes. Our owner mortgaged his wife’s jewellery to pay us. Not everyone can do this. I’m so proud to be working for him. The Government doesn’t support us. I have friends in other countries working in circus and they get full support from their Government. There are schools for circus that teaches gymnastics and art to the aspirants along with academics but none of that exists in here,” Nair points out adding that the reason for the death of circus is due to the laws against using animals and child artists.
“The shows are based only on the gymnastics, clowns and animals. Training for gymnastics can be given to children, grown-ups have much more difficulty in learning the art. We only train children keeping in place all the safety and security measures for their lives. There are some children who do so many stunts and gymnastic acts on talent hunt reality shows and films too nowadays. Aren’t their lives at riskIJ Animals and clowns are the reason, children come to watch the circus. Also, the live entertainment scene, especially for the circus, has been replaced by the TV which comes for free,” he explains.
Taking a stand for the use of animals in circus, Biju says that they don’t torture animals. They are there just to amuse the public. But yes, there are a few circuses which don’t treat the animals appropriately.
“There are bad people in every industry and I have fought with many owners who torture their animals and artists. At several places, they make the tourists ride the animals, they do this all day in scorching heat, isn’t that tortureIJ Isn’t it torture when animals are made to pull and carry heavy load without even feeding them wellIJ Animals are used for different things in the film industry too. Then why only circus animals are taken awayIJ
“We at Rambo Circus, just make the animals do small tricks to entertain the public, we feed them well, take care of them, provide them medical treatments if required and keep them clean. The Government took our animals and none of them are alive now. They leave the animals in the zoo and jungles where they die since they are pets and can’t survive in the jungle,” Nair says adding that he is happy that at least they have got the permission to keep horses and the circus is planning to bring out an act soon.
He also wrote letters to Ministers several times about the dying state of circus and seeking support but never got a response. He wants the Indian circus artists to go abroad just like foreign artists come to India. Two girls from the Rambo Circus went to South America and Mauritius to perform there.
Calling the circus artists as real heroes for risking their lives, he says: “They put their lives in danger for every performance. I’ve seen many gymnasts who have fallen and broke their bones. They can no longer work now. Their lives are ruined totally.” There is only one thing about the circus that Nair dislikes — people who look down on it. He expressed his regret for hiding from his children that he is a clown.
“One day, I called my son wearing my makeup to reveal the truth. I asked him if he was ashamed that his father is a clown. He said he was proud of me. I was happy beyond words and that is enough for me,” Nair says.