We’ve seen Prestige, The Illusionist and Now You See Me, and tried our best to mimic the tricks of the eye. Delhi-based Karan Singh will be unveiling some fascinating routines, which have never before been shown, adding to our illusion dreams.Aptly named Legilimens, for his love of Harry Potter and magic, Karan’s first national tour is reflective of his knack for mind-reading. What sets his shows apart from many others we may have been witness to are his autobiographical narratives that are intrinsically bound to his shows. Earlier this year, Karan dazzled Mumbai’s masses with ‘One Night Stand,’ leading to one of many standing ovations he’s received over the course of his mesmerising career.
Origin story
Starting his journey at the age of 11, the past 15 years have seen a growth in his realm of performance artistry, becoming more mind-boggling while retaining firebrand showmanship. “Ever since I’ve started magic and have been old enough to make a decision for myself, I’ve always been baffled, intrigued, amazed, awed and almost idol-worshiped mentalist Derren Brown. When I was 19, I flew to London to see him perform and got a chance to meet him and do a little trick for him to which he reacted, ‘I have no idea how you do that.’ Since then, I’ve made my pilgrimage to the UK every year just to see him perform, the learning from it is beautiful.”
Karan shares his excitement towards performing in Hyderabad; the show finally comes after several trials of finding the right venue and ironing out logistical issues.
City specific
While Karan doesn’t deviate from the set storyline of the show flow, he shares how he communicates with the audience does differ from city to city, “If it’s Delhi I know I have to keep at it to hold their attention, in Mumbai there’s a stony silence which gets people intrigued, in Pune I had to have more laughs in the show for the younger crowd. I’ve been trying to do a show in Hyderabad for over a year now, and I look forward to what the city has in store, only when I’m on stage will I be able to take the vibe of the audience and say what I have to say accordingly. From what I think, Hyderabad has a lot of people from all over the country because of the work opportunities so automatically it becomes the most diverse audience of the tour to perform for.”
Expect plenty of clever referencing to demonetisation and GST in Karan’s Sunday show. He adds, “Towards the end of the show I dedicate a little something to the Government and their vendetta against me to curb my ticket sales by announcing a new money-related policy every time I plan a show.”
Karan Singh presents Legilimens at Heart Cup Coffee, Begumpet on Sunday August 6 at 8:30pm. Tickets are available online for ₹599.