‘The Great Kanchana Circus’: A historical novel with a gripping premise but excessive details
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The Great Kanchana Circus, written by Vishwas Patil and translated by Nadeem Khan, starts on the back of a successful performance by a circus run by Sarang Shinde, operating in Maharashtra and Karnataka. Shinde, a former army man, has built the enterprise from scratch, along with his daughter, the titular Kanchana. As the circus grows in fame and soon becomes sought after across the country, so does Kanchana.
Life in the circus
An acclaimed cat-handler herself, she is the main draw for the circus, with her breathtaking theatrics with her beloved tigress. Kanchana’s bravery and flamboyance serve as the driving force behind the circus’ success. The first half of the novel is spent entirely establishing the backstory and subsequent success of this small circus and the father-daughter duo running it. The relationship that Sarang Daaji shares with his daughter is explored in detail, revealing how he brought her up as a single father in the face of rejection by his own family and community.
The second half of the novel takes a sharp swerve to Burma, now Myanmar, in the onset of the Second World War. Now a pan-South Asia entertainment draw, Kanchana and her circus are invited to perform in Burma in the weeks leading up...