Empire of Enchantment: the story of Indian magic — John Zubrzycki in coversation with Sanjoy K. Roy | Events

Empire of Enchantment: the story of Indian magic — John Zubrzycki in coversation with Sanjoy K. Roy

India’s association with magicians goes back thousands of years. Conjurors and illusionists dazzled the courts of Hindu maharajas and Mughal emperors. As British dominion spread over the subcontinent, such wonder-workers became synonymous with India. Western magicians appropriated Indian attire, tricks and stage names; switching their turbans for top hats, Indian jugglers fought back and earned their grudging respect.

In this session, John Zubrzycki in conversation with Sanjoy K. Roy tells the extraordinary story of how Indian magic descended from the realm of the gods to become part of daily ritual and popular entertainment across the globe. Recounting tales of levitating Brahmins, resurrections, prophesying monkeys and ‘the most famous trick never performed’, Empire of Enchantment: The Story of Indian Magic vividly charts Indian magic’s epic journey from street to the stage.

John Zubrzycki has worked in India as a diplomat, consultant, tour guide and correspondent for The Australian. His background is in South Asian history and Hindi, and his doctoral thesis (at the University of New South Wales) concerns historical links between Indian and Western stage magicians. John’s previous books include The Last Nizam and The Mysterious Mr Jacob.

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Empire of Enchantment: the story of Indian magic — John Zubrzycki in coversation with Sanjoy K. Roy

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Multi-time winner of the Australian Small Publisher of the Year Award