Jewel Aich - Musicians, Facts and Childhood

Jewel Aich was born on April 10, 1950, in Shomdekathi village, Shorupkathi Thana, Barisal district, south Bangladesh, as the fifth of nine children, to businessman B.K. Aich.

As a child, he suffered from severe headaches which forced him to stay away from his friends and hence, he became an introvert and slowly got interested in the art of magic.

His passion for magic started getting deeper after seeing a performance by a gypsy man at his family home. Further, he got interested in playing a type of flute, Bansuri, and started taking classes from his village friend, Poritosh Mondol.

Fascinated by a neck-cutting trick performed by a magician at a circus show, he created a special wooden trick knife and executed a leg-cutting magic on one his friends in front of a group of friends.

While reading the books of Bangladeshi artist-writer, Bonde Ali Miah, his love for magic grew stronger, but the thought of becoming a professional magician struck him while reading renowned Indian magician, P.C. Sorkar’s book.

He developed more tricks and became famous as a magician and Bansuri player, even before completing his studies. He finished his higher studies from Jagannath University, Dhaka.

He started concentrating on perfecting his tricks after passing out from college and received various offers for shows. This was the beginning of a famous career ahead.

He joined the army in the early 1970s during the Bangladesh Liberation War and participated in the combat war (Shommukh Juddho) for an independent Bangladesh.

Even while he was unwell during the war, he entertained the soldiers with his magic tricks and taught students at refugee camps.

In 1979, his magic clippings were shown to Americans by Mostafa Kamal Wahid, which were highly appreciated.

He was invited by the Society of American Magicians to deliver a live performance in front of thousands of magicians in America, in 1981.

In 1997, he went to Dhaka to perform magic on the show of famous Bangladeshi TV host, Abdullah Abu Sayeed. The overwhelming response from the audience urged him to give regular performances on different television shows.

Apart from performing all over Bangladesh, he has wooed the audience with his magical tricks in major cities around the world as well.

He has earned a reputation not only as a successful magician, but also as a Bansuri player. He is a regular artist at a state-owned radio broadcaster, Bangladesh Betar, and plays flute in the ‘Voice of America’ program.

The Jewel Aich Celebration Committee honored him with a trophy, which was presented by Paul Daniels at London’s Hackney Empire Theatre.

He is a recipient of Ekushey Padak, one of the highest civilian awards of Bangladesh.

He is married to Bipasha Aich, with whom he has one child.

This famous magician and Bansuri player has created a curved Bansuri in order to provide support to his back and keep his head straight, thereby avoiding any kind of stress which could result in a headache.