Wink, and you miss it. Illusionist Alexander Magu does not believe in building up a nail-biting end. Abracadabra - and the spell is cast, the magic done.
Watch the Russian artiste, who has over 2,000 shows and a similar number of tricks under his belt -- read under his suit - and you might want to pay a visit to your ophthalmologist.
A bottle stands on the table in front of you. "Extra, extra bottles," he says in his inimitable style, with a strong Russian, and the bottles start to multiply.
He mixes sand with water. And then he separates the two.
"Magician is a guy from fairy tales. They don't exist. I am an illusionist who uses different spells, special equipment and techniques like a psychologist to make illusions. I don't do miracles. I do tricks that look like miracles," Alexander Magu tells PTI.
With a trick literally up his sleeve, Magu is adept at various kinds of magic including mind reading and gravitational illusions.
Magu, who has been holding shows in Delhi, asks a member of the audience to choose any page and word from a book. Hey Presto, he tells the spectator what the word is.
In the mind-boggling 'message in a box' trick, he gives a box to a person sitting in the audience and asks spectators questions such as their favourite place and so on.
The magic: all the answers that the people give are in the box, sealed in envelopes.
That is not the only skill he has in his armoury - the illusionist has a sense of humour, too, so it's not just his tricks that weave magic.
"Now I will give this box to a person sitting in the back row. Now I know people will be thinking that I have known this person for the past 10 years... However, the fact of the matter is that he and I have been friends for five years only," he says, and the audience laughs.
Asked how much time it takes to learn such tricks, he smilingly replies, "One month if you want to amaze your friends".
With such talent Magu is the centre of attraction wherever he goes. Does he like that?
"This is the problem of my life. I hate to go to my friends' weddings or any private event just because of this. As we know this is not a common profession People always want to know some trick. But then this is the life I happily chose," Magu says.
With the capital covered in toxic air, does he have any breath-taking - pun intended - act to get the people out of the haze?
"I forget my magic vacuum cleaner back home. If I'd known this before I could have helped you," he laughs.
But then, as he says, he doesn't do miracles.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
