Do you know why shape of circus tent is round?

Date:16th November, 2014
Place: GMDC ground Ahmedabad
Show: 3:00 to 6:00

Circus is "a group of travelling performers including acrobats or those who work with trained animals or a performance by such people usually in a large tent. (Cambridge dictionary)

It's a latin word "ring" or "circus" which means a round shape. I think "circle" word also originated from this only. Have anybody has seen circus tent of any other shape other than "round"? The answer will be surely NO.

Historically circus is a gift of Romans. The history of circus is a bit complex but without going in to that complexity let me come to the point. It might have been started and even today considered as a medium of entertainment, a platform to perform risky stunt, a scope to show how well human can train animals, but my perspective is slightly different. I am writing this article because yesterday I also watched circus with kids. No doubt for kids it's all entertainment, a reason to laugh,a reason to wonder, a reason to get amazed but for me it is a kind of pain.

With our age, our understanding towards certain facts of world also changes and so do my. While kids were enjoying I was thinking about performer which includes humans as well as animals. Whatsoever may be glory of circus in the past but presently I feel pity about it. 

Three hours show was nothing but paining for me. Of 5 to almost 45 years of performers were doing their best to earn clapping from audience. 

A child who is suppose to play, suppose to enjoy his childhood, suppose to go to school at this age was part of this stunt game. They were colorful by clothes but cloth-less in real life. They were smiling with full make up on face but their real faces were not so charming. An adult generally works for 8 hours a day but these children were performing continuously 3 shows - 3-6, 6-9 and 9-12 which make 9 hours untiring performance. The entire crew of performers has to do this much of exercise, not only performers but supporting staff too. Same for animals start from birds, dogs, horse and elephants. I do not know how much these living performers would be getting money or food out of it but definitely not that much where they can just do limited performance and leave this profession. Some may counter argue on this by saying that they themselves have chose to be part of circus but not all. Some may have dreams other than this also. We can't deny to that fact also. Than this article is for them only who might be having different dreams, specially children. 

These children might not have seen life other than circus is also quite possible but virtue of curiosity is god given gift in every child. Don't you think they must be asking themselves sometime that why we can not go to watch circus? Why can't we be the audience? Why can't we have popcorn and candy in our hand, sitting chair and enjoying the show? Why we are risking our life? 

These questions came in my mind because I purposefully visited back yard of circus. Dirty tent, temporary and unhygienic area of living, small kids of different performers playing without clothes and mothers cooking food on "desi chulha". I asked one of the lady about their native and she replied - Kathmandu. I asked, does this child has seen his motherland? She paused and started staring at me and told - NO. He was born somewhere in India where our circus was planned. Even she didn't got average support from Govt. hospital for delivery as they were outsiders for them. Her kid was standing nearby and starring at me. To be frank I couldn't dare to see his eyes. My heart was full of sorrow when I thought that this child even do not have his native place. They belong to nowhere but they have to travel everywhere. Entire India that lady must have seen but none of the part of India belongs to her. She told I was 18 when got married and by 20 she was mother. Her husband is responsible for fixing tents and do all back yard duties like cleaning of animals, fixing curtains, serving food late night to performers and cleaning of utensils after that. I asked how much you get? She couldn't reply. She just told we get food to eat, place to stay, fare to travel along with circus. My next question was, do you like this life? By putting her hand on his son's head she replied, my life if over Sab but for my child I never wish such life. We do not have any identity. We are no more than these tied animals. Till we perform or we can do hard work - labour job we are useful so company keep us but as the age grows we become useless, then we become burden to them and one day they ask us to leave. But she advocated company by adding that Circus management always takes care of us when we are part of it. We are family but we do not have safety. If something happens during practice/show they support us but if someone dies or become permanently disable they give us some money and ask us to leave.

She told, Sab for us soul is least required but working body is most important. If our dead body performs we are best but if our living body do not perform than we are nothing. People live their life we live only our body.

For us minimum maintenance maximum performance. Eat less, work more and this applies to animals too. Diseased animals are discarded inhumanly and disabled humans are asked to leave.

I left that place without looking back but face of that lady, eyes of that child and answers of that mother is still humming in my head.

Circus - Sincerely circus is of round shape, people come, perform and go and this cycle goes on. I think now I understood why the shape of circus tent is round and not any other.