Photographer K.R. Sunil has captured the poignant stories of India's forgotten circus performers in his black-and-white photography series "Thambu – Tales from the Great Indian Circus," currently on display in Mumbai. The exhibition documents the lives of 46 circus artists from Thalassery, Kerala, once known as India's circus capital, bridging their glorious past with their present struggles.
Between the 1960s and 1990s, when circus performers returned home to the villages of Thalassery, they were celebrated like royalty. They made grand entries in taxi cars, dressed in flamboyant clothes with faces dusted in talcum powder and bodies bathed in fragrant scents. The metallic trunk boxes they carried contained magical souvenirs from faraway lands, and to the villagers who watched in awe, these men and women represented hope and possibility.
Today, many of these former superstars live in poverty in Thalassery, dealing with the same hardships they once sought to escape. They are now aged, many injured, and stripped of the stardust they once sparkled with. By the mid-1990s, the entertainment industry had evolved significantly, and changing laws regarding animal and child welfare controversies brought the golden age of circus to an end.
The 50-year-old Kodungallur-based photographer began his documentation project in 2014, focusing on "people and communities often forgotten or overlooked by the world." His work was inspired by a chance meeting with Kamala, a veteran circus artist, in Salem in 2016. Orphaned at an early age, Kamala had left her hometown in Nepal at age five to join a group of travelers, eventually becoming an integral part of the Great Bombay Circus.
Kamala's story exemplified the circus life. She married Gopalan Mulloli, a performer from Thalassery, and together they founded their own circus called Rajkamal while in Zira, Punjab. Sunil recalls how Kamala described collecting discarded circus tent materials from various places they traveled to, stitching them together to bring their own circus to life. Despite owning a home in Thalassery, she preferred to travel with her troupe, sleeping in circus tents and surrounding herself with the sights and sounds of the only life she had ever known. Kamala died in 2019.
The exhibition, curated by Zurich-based Asian Contemporary Fine Art founder Birgid Uccia, comprises black-and-white portraits alongside a treasure trove of old photographs that Sunil gained access to during multiple visits to the artists' homes. Over three years, he spent approximately 150 days in the city documenting their lives. While some were doing well, most were struggling financially.
"Their eyes always lit up when they spoke about the way they spun in hoops and swung from the trapeze," Sunil observed. "They really were stars." Notable figures including Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and actors Raj Kapoor and Kamal Haasan were among those who attended their performances.
Sunil met Moorkkoth Vengakkandi Sankaran, popularly known as Gemini Sankar and founder of Gemini Circus, at age 99, just before he died in 2023. The jovial man spoke animatedly about his encounter with actor Raj Kapoor at his circus in Mumbai, which served as the set for Kapoor's iconic film "Mera Naam Joker" (1970). As the film became a hit, Gemini Circus soared in popularity.
For many villagers, the circus represented a ticket out of abject poverty. Families sent their children hoping they would earn money. These children, called "Companykuttikal" (kids of the company), grew up in tents where religion, caste, nationality, and language posed no barriers. However, life inside the tents was grueling, with training sessions lasting for hours and children being made to perform impossible stunts. Injuries were common, but that was considered part of the deal.
Among the notable performers was Hippo Janaki, who joined the Great Oriental Circus at age eight. She earned her nickname due to her exceptional skills with hippopotamuses. Performing alongside lions and elephants, one of her iconic roles was that of a queen riding atop an elephant in colorful parades. Sunil met her at age 86. Her career ended with the birth of her son, and years later, her artist-husband Rajagopal took his own life at a lodge, unable to handle the financial burden of running a circus.
Thalassery's relationship with circus began with Keeleri Kunhikannan, a reputed wrestler and Kalari master. When he witnessed Maharashtrian Vishnupant Moreshwar Chhatre's circus (considered the founder of modern Indian circus) perform in the Kerala city in the early 20th century, the jaw-dropping stunts impressed him. He decided to train his students in this new art form that pushed the limits of the human body.
Within three years, on February 4, 1904, they staged Thalassery's first show, the Great Malabar Circus, led by Kunhikannan's student Paliyari Kannan. Kunhikannan's brand of circus was a curious mix of stunts picked up from Chhatre's circus, embellished with his own numbers. By the 1960s, many circuses in India were owned by people from this ancient port town.
The circus often served as a refuge for the marginalized. Dhanalakshmi P, who was honored by former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, became a source of solace and strength for young girls in her troupe. When she returned to Thalassery at the end of her career, she adopted Priya, a person with dwarfism, as her daughter. When their circus closed down, Priya had nowhere else to go. Dhanalakshmi died in 2022.
Among those still alive is 70-year-old Prabhakaran, popularly known as "Two-and-a-Half Prabhakaran." The fearless trapeze artist excelled at the advanced two-and-a-half turn leap and entertained audiences both inside and outside the ring as a singer. His most cherished memory is acting in "Mera Naam Joker" and meeting actor Raj Kapoor. Prabhakaran's 40-year career spanned several circus troupes until a mid-performance fall in Mumbai left him paralyzed. He now leads a quiet life in Thalassery.
Sunil's broader body of work focuses on lives connected to the sea, including "Vanishing Life Worlds" about the people of Ponnani, "Manchukkar, The Seafarers of Malabar," and "Chavittu Nadakam: Storytellers of the Seashore" about artists living on the verge of climate catastrophe. The "Thambu – Tales from the Great Indian Circus" exhibition runs at Sakshi Gallery in Mumbai through November 5, open daily from 11 AM to 6 PM.
