Protul Chandra Sorcar
P. C. Sorcar
Born	(1913-02-23)23 February 1913 Tangail,Mymensingh,Bengal Presidency,British India (now inDhaka Division,Bangladesh)
Died	6 January 1971(1971-01-06) (aged 57) Asahikawa,Hokkaidō,Japan
Occupation	Magician
Spouse	Basanti Devi
Children	3 sons,Manick Sorcar,P. C. Sorcar Jr.,P. C. Sorcar, Young
Relatives	Piya Sorcar,Maneka Sorcar,Moubani Sorcar,Mumtaz Sorcar (grandchildren)

Protul Chandra Sorcar (23 February 1913 – 6 January 1971) was an Indian magician.^[1] He was an internationally activemagician throughout the 1950s and 1960s, performing hisIndrajal show before live audiences and on television. Sorcar died of aheart attack at the age of 57 inAsahikawa,Hokkaidō,Japan, on 6 January 1971, as he left the stage at the end of a performance.^[2] P.C. Sorcar is known also as P.C. Sorcar Senior (as his sonP.C. Sorcar Jr. also performs under the same name), is renowned as "Father of Modern Indian Magic".^[3]

At the age of 21, Sorcar decided to give up formal education (he was likely to study to become an engineer), and decided to become a conjuror despite the profession's low esteem in India.^[4]: 151

Sorcar became famous in the mid-1930s, when he performed shows inKolkata and also inJapan and several other countries. Among other routines, he performed a Floating Lady routine featuringaerial suspension in 1964.^[5]Ganapati Chakraborty was his mentor.^[6]

In 1956, he performed thesawing a woman in half illusion on theBBC'sPanorama program.^[2] When he performed it on live television, it draw huge attention in the United Kingdom because the climax made it appear as though the women had actually been cut in half and died, which caused a public panic.^[2]

His self-appointed title was "The World's Greatest Magician".^[4]: 152

Sorcar died in Japan in 1971, suffering a massive heart attack while exiting the stage at the end of a performance.^{[2][4]: 153}

Sorcar was married to Basanti Devi. They were the parents of theanimator,director and laseristManick Sorcar and magiciansP. C. Sorcar Jr. andP. C. Sorcar, Young.

This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(June 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

• Jadusamrat P.C. Sorcar Sarani The Government of India has named a major street in Calcutta after him
• Padma Shri (the Lotus), awarded by the President of India on 26 January 1964
• The Sphinx (Oscar of Magic), US, 1946 and 1954
• The Royal Medallion, German Magic Circle

On 23 February 2010,India Post issued a commemorative stamp to honour him.^[7][8]

• Magic for You (1966)
• More Magic for You (1965)
• History of Magic (1970)
• Indian Magic (1983)

• Indian magicians

• P.C. Sorcar International Library

• 1913 births
• 1971 deaths
• Historians of magic (illusion)
• Indian magicians
• Artists from Kolkata
• Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts
• People from Tangail District
• Sorcar family
• Ananda Mohan College alumni

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from September 2018
• Use Indian English from September 2018
• All Wikipedia articles written in Indian English
• Articles with hCards
• Articles needing additional references from June 2022
• All articles needing additional references
• Articles needing additional references from June 2019