page_title: Priyanath Bose
section_title: Founding Great Bengal Circus
hierarchical_section_title: Priyanath Bose / Career / Founding Great Bengal Circus
caption_attribution_description: English: Image of Manomohan Bose (17 July 1831 - 4 February 1912), Indian journalist, poet and playwright and one of the organizers of Hindu Mela.
context_page_description: Priyanath Bose also known as Professor Bose was an Indian circus performer and entrepreneur. In 1887 he founded the Great Bengal Circus with an all-Indian team and toured Bengal, India and South East Asia. He is considered to be one the pioneers of circus in India.
context_section_description: Whenever Wilson's Great World Circus or Chiarini's Italian Circus arrived in Kolkata, he would go to see their shows. At the show, he would resolve to set up his own circus, with an all-Bengali team and he would prove that Bengalis were also fearless and skillful. He would prepare sketches of the performing artistes at their various poses and bribe the circus workers to give him access to their equipment. He would prepare sketches of the equipment and take their measurements. He would prepare similar equipment and train his pupils with them.
  Once while he was training his pupils at the akhada in his ancestral village of Chhota Jagulia, a very thin and skinny horse arrived there. His boys captured it and brought it to the akhada. Priyanath considered the sudden appearance of the horse out of nowhere as a good omen and an indication from the Supreme Being to start his own circus. After feeding the horse well, Priyanath began to train it in earnest. However, setting up a circus required a lot of investment. His father Manomohan Bose was never very comfortable with Priyanath choosing a career based on his gymnastic skills. Not only did he refuse to provide a single penny, he tried his best to change his son's mind. He arranged a job for Priyanath as a drawing instructor at a salary of ₹ 75 per month. Priyanath fumed at his father's actions and resolved to pursue his goal, in spite of opposition from his family. He began to amass the capital he would need on his own. He also borrowed some money from the women of his family and a few other sources. He formed a small team of gymnasts and, without informing his family, left Kolkata.
  Priyanath and his team first went to Midnapore. Then he toured Jhargram, Bankura and Birbhum and performed at the zamindar houses. During this time, he did not have a tent, gallery or menagerie. After making some money on the tour, Priyanath returned to Kolkata. Then he bought the equipment, monkeys, dogs and horses of the National Circus from Nabagopal Mitra. He also arranged a tent. At this time he hired one horse from the akhada of Nanda Ghosh in Shyambazar. Rakhal Chandra Bose of the same akhada was appointed as the accountant. Priyanath augmented his team with a few more performers. In 1887, he formally launched his circus as Professor Bose's Great Bengal Circus.
caption: Manomohan Bose did not like his son taking up circus as a profession.
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