(CNN) An Indian stuntman who went missing in the Hooghly River on Sunday after attempting a Houdini-style daredevil stunt is feared drowned, according to authorities.

Chanchal Lahiri was tied up with steel chains and rope and slowly lowered into the water for the escape stunt near the Howrah Bridge in Kolkata. He was expected to free himself and emerge out of the water, as he had done many times before.

But onlookers waited for about 30 minutes before launching a frantic search along the banks and in the water. They have so far been unable to find him.

Rescue workers have been scouring the fast-flowing, murky waters since Sunday, Syed Waquar Raza from the river traffic police told Agence France-Presse. "We fear he drowned in the river," he said.

Lahiri, 40, popularly known as "Jadugar Mandrake" -- which translates to "Wizard Mandrake" or "Mandrake the Magician" -- was lowered into the river by a crane as family members, media and police watched from afar, the agency reported.

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