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Latest comment: 18 years ago205 comments20 people in discussion
Q1
Thanks for the praise, Guru, and Lost, for taking care of setting up this page! I can only say I have the blessings of Google Baba :-D. Here's the next question. Interesting, and very easy to google if you put in the right keywords. More than a century ago, the British planted a lot of trees in a very long line (more than a thousand km) in a roughly north-south bearing across India. What was the purpose of this project? --Longhairandabeard15:13, 27 July 2006 (UTC)
No hint yet, so here's a guess... Tea plantations(I know its not a tree) across India to take the international market from China? [1] -- Lost17:42, 27 July 2006 (UTC)
Nope, not tea plantations. Hint: The purpose was purely administrative, very much in line with the ultimate objective of the British in India. --Longhairandabeard17:58, 27 July 2006 (UTC)
Very interesting link. Do we have an article for Indian Forest Department? (We have Indian Forest Service but this could be an interesting history article in itself..) But no, not what I have in mind. What I am referring to was a single line of trees, mostly of a particular kind. There was other kind of vegetation as well. Here comes the big hint: The purpose is very strongly related to Mahatma Gandhi. --Longhairandabeard18:25, 27 July 2006 (UTC)
Hmmm time for another hint.. This project was called the Great Indian ________. Look in the titles of recent animation movies for filling the blank.. --Longhairandabeard21:00, 27 July 2006 (UTC)
Here comes the giveaway clue. An Englishman researched the project and its implications in detail and wrote a book called, guess what, The Great _________ of India, published in 2001. Come on guys, it can't get easier than this. --Longhairandabeard23:41, 27 July 2006 (UTC)
OK, looks like this is it. We are talking about "The Great Hedge of India" planted so that salt tax becomes unavoidable? -- Lost02:28, 28 July 2006 (UTC)
Yup! You got it! The Great Hedge of India was planted by the British East India Company in the first half of 19th century. It acted as a customs barrier, and thorny trees and bushes were used to make it impenetrable. All of this to collect the Salt Tax at gaps in the hedge. It extended from Multan in North India to Burhanpur, and at one stage till Sonapur in Orissa. Roy Moxham studied the history of this hedge and attempted to find its remains in modern day India. He has written about his travel experience and the history of Salt Tax in the book 'The Great Hedge of India - The living barrier that divided a nation'. Great read, strongly recommend to everyone.. Link to Roy Moxham's website (The movie mentioned in one of the clues is Over the Hedge, if anyone is wondering.) Your turn, Lost. --Longhairandabeard04:14, 28 July 2006 (UTC)
This crown was made for and worn by only one king. It was worn only once during a historic event that witnessed an attendance of thousands of people, most of them royalty. Name the crown and the event. -- Lost14:17, 28 July 2006 (UTC)
Man!! that didnt even last 5 minutes. I need to ask more obscure questions!! Srikeit, over to you. The event is now obvious, but for the record, it was the Delhi Durbar -- Lost14:23, 28 July 2006 (UTC)
Q3
My severe lack of interesting knowledge (or just pure laziness) has rendered me unable to post any trying questions. So I'll just modify a rather simple question in a complex (looking) form :P
Well at least this lasted for more than 30 min - a whole lot longer than I expected it to. Anyway over to you Mr. "Lambe baal aur daadhi" :-) --Srikeit(Talk | Email)04:28, 29 July 2006 (UTC)
Q4
Thanks Srikeit :-) An easy one from me too.
This Nobel Laureate is/was not Indian nor of Indian origin, but received the Nobel Prize for work done in India. Who? --Longhairandabeard05:06, 29 July 2006 (UTC)
Ronald Ross is who I had in mind. He discovered the malarial parasite at Secunderabad. Koch's work on TB was only partly not done in India. He studied cholera and malaria in India. Borlaug received the Nobel for the consequences of his work in South Asia, but the research that led to it was done in Mexico. But wait a minute. Why am I justifying my decision? I am the quiz master. So I say Ronald Ross is the right answer. And anirudh gets the points! :-) --Longhairandabeard05:51, 29 July 2006 (UTC)
She was born in Hyderabad. She left for Bombay at some point in her life and joined a record company. There she helped form the artistes management division. She managed famous Indian pop stars, among them someone whose footsteps she followed (but did not reach where the pop star reached. The pop star become a pop star after she reached where she reached). In 1997 she became the third Indian to do something. Who are we talking about? Apologies if in the quest to make this simple question with a simple answer un-googlable I have made it complicated. --anirudh07:08, 29 July 2006 (UTC)
yup! sigh!didn't last long, did it. For those who are wondering, Diana Hayden became runner-up to Miss India and went onto become the third Indian Miss World. Mehnaz was Miss India before her and became a pop star. She also managed Anaida. [3][4] ooh...2 red links. :-) Over to Idleguy. --anirudh07:33, 29 July 2006 (UTC)
Interestingly, upon googling, it was answers.com (a mirror site) that got me the answer and not wikipedia:). Next question around midnight -- Lost(talk)16:18, 29 July 2006 (UTC)
Q7
This one should be very easy. But in my endeavour to prevent people from answering in 5 minutes, I will make it obscure, even though I know the answer will still come too soon. Here goes: This company is the oldest in its sector. It was actually started outside India. Name it. (Hints only in the morning) -- Lost(talk)18:27, 29 July 2006 (UTC)
Upon rereading, I may have been too vague. Now that the five minute deadline has passed, here's the first hint:) The company was started before independence -- Lost(talk)18:48, 29 July 2006 (UTC)
Was Indian Railways started outside India?? But, here's the magnanimous me with another hint: This company has now been taken over by another company, though it operates by its original name -- Lost(talk)19:03, 29 July 2006 (UTC)
Well well, no tries yet... So here's another hint. A major city of the other country features prominently in an old Hindi song -- Lost(talk)04:13, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Burma Shell? and the city is Rangoon from "Mere Piya gaye Rangoon" though I dunno the Gujarati bizman u talk about. --Gurubrahma05:29, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Damn!! Guruji, with you around I should have been more careful with my contribs;). I thought you were on a long wikibreak though. I actually just deprodded the article and while going through material to add to it, found interesting enough info for PINQ. Well over to you -- Lost(talk)05:51, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Nope, as you can see, I worked towards the answer. I got it from the ref I added to the article just now - seeing the bad shape it was in, I just looked at history and voila! I confirmed my answer. ;) --Gurubrahma06:07, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Well, one obvious connect is that they were all born before independence, but I suspect you are looking for something else:) -- Lost(talk)06:11, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Yes lost, and i assume that you worked it out yourself instead of depending on a straight google search! --Gurubrahma07:04, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Well, ahem.. I would love to give the credit to my memory, but with the convenience of google, I just took two names at random and this connect came up. Mark my words - Google is going to rust our memories:) Next question either evening IST or after midnight IST depending on when I get back -- Lost(talk)07:57, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Ok, just back from watching Omkara, so gotta ask a bollywood question. Identify the Bollywood personality who lost his/her father to World war 2. <evil grin>obscure enough?</evil grin> -- Lost(talk)20:01, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Even I am finding it hard to google this.. So to make it easier: the person was/is the only one of his/her ethnicity in Bollywood -- Lost(talk)20:16, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Nadia? Her father died in World War I though.. Scot from father's side, Greek from her mother's, and Australian by birth, I guess she was the only one of all of her three ethnicities in Bollywood. --Longhairandabeard23:31, 30 July 2006 (UTC)
Not much of a question and not really connected with India as such, but given that majority of Hindus stay in India and the largest religious denomination in India is Hindus, I think it is a fair go. Not so much of a question, but an observation though. Which South American beverage, if launched with its current name, has the potential to hurt the sensibilities of Hindus? --Gurubrahma13:36, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
Nope, not what I was looking for; the name itself, for that beverage could be hurting Hindu sensibilities. google doesn't help, but disambig pages on WP wd definitely help. --Gurubrahma13:56, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
Just to help fellow answerers, there are 2725 disambig pages starting with A alone:) I wonder when another hint would be forthcoming, huh guruji.. And yes, google doesnt seem to help till now -- Lost(talk)14:26, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
This prominent Indian person wrote a short biography for an article in Time of one of our Prime ministers. He is not a journalist by profession. Name him. I have a feeling this is not going to last very long -- Lost(talk)17:14, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
Indeed, I am actually surprised it lasted so long, because this was as recently as 2005 when Dr. Singh was chosen for Time:100. LHAB, please let us know what time you will be asking the question. So I can check back then -- Lost(talk)19:28, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
Here's lucky thirteen: Identify this person: related to a former chief minister of an Indian state, former correspondent of a major US TV network, best selling author, TV producer. Has written mainly about Western perceptions of Indian culture. - Parthi05:00, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
Gee! I don't know how to come up with tough questions. This is the second time my questions have been answered within 15 mins! - Parthi05:17, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
I guess there were just too many clues in there.. Of course, the omnipresence of Google doesn't make things easier for the quizmaster.. --Longhairandabeard05:22, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
Q14
The next question should be easy to google. If it survives, I will only be able to provide clues around evening IST. Here is the question: What animal did the Aryans bring to the Indian subcontinent? --Longhairandabeard05:44, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
That's right, assuming the Aryan invasion/migration theory is correct. Btw, the essay in that link is a great read.. a level headed criticism of the Aryan invation theory. Go Srikeit! --Longhairandabeard06:33, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
I've googled till I could google no more but could not find a question that can test your brilliant (albeit google-aided) minds. So I have resorted to asking a question about our unofficial national sport - cricket.
/me assassinates google :( There goes my pathetic attempt at trying to ask a difficult question. Over to you Lost. BTW what was your search string? I didn't think it would be so easy to find :P --Srikeit(Talk | Email)19:03, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
Forgetting the exact string, but it was directly from the question:) [11]. The wikipedia article is linked right at the top. I must admit this quiz is making me better at googling :). Next q in the morning. -- Lost(talk)19:14, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
This one is also about a brand. The brand is from pre independence India. Its marketing campaign was launched by Lintas. My source even mentions that this was probably the first ever campaign targeted exclusively at Indians. The brand had a very strong name till the 90s I think. Is this enough to solicit an answer? -- Lost(talk)04:46, 2 August 2006 (UTC)
One of the objectives of this organisation X (which was created by a more famous organisation Y) is to make India an attractive place to do business in. Name X and Y. --hydkat05:39, 2 August 2006 (UTC)
Just checked the link... and no its not a redirect. Hint: the reverse order of the two word phrase forms the first two words of org X. --hydkat10:15, 2 August 2006 (UTC)
Its really irritating me this question hasn't been answered yet... so here's hint#3: The phrase has got to do with image management. --hydkat13:14, 2 August 2006 (UTC)
Well, I guess I boasted a little too much in the previous question. Googling isn't really helping here :( -- Lost(talk)13:43, 2 August 2006 (UTC)
Thanks :-) Continuing the tradition of X and Y, albeit in Indian mythology. A number of beings belonging to class A were given punishment B for act C. The punishment of all except one (D) of the class was very short, courtesy of E. Name A,B,C,D and E. (This is so nostalgically similar to the IIT entrance chemistry qs! :-D) --Longhairandabeard19:24, 2 August 2006 (UTC)
I guess more hints are in order.. E was the mother of D (now there's a twist in the plot!) and is still on the earth, albeit she is not considered a Chiranjeevin. --Longhairandabeard03:54, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
Thanks Longhairandbeard. Derive a (...) connection between Puneet Issar & Brad Pitt. (The ... will be filled if no one gets it initially) --Srikeit(Talk | Email)05:39, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
Hi guys, this is srikeit editing from my mobile. I can't get to a PC so had to edit from here (forgive the bad formatting not very easy to edit from a cell) Anyway all I can say Longhairandbeard is that you are at the door & you've just got to put the pieces together. Cheers 216.239.58.13617:25, 3 August 2006 (UTC) (srikeit's cell)
Achilles's weakness was in his heel; Duryodhana's in his thigh. So the 'connect' would be they have played characters with similar weaknesses? - Cribananda17:26, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
Well i'm confused now. Longhair... has given the bulk of the answer, while Cribanda has given the answer i was looking for. I leave it for you guys to decide (partly because i'm tired of typing in t9 !) 216.239.58.13617:45, 3 August 2006 (UTC) (srikeit from his cell)
I think Longhair should take it. He did all the hard work. I actually hardly read the question - I only read his answer :-) - Cribananda17:47, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
Over to you then, Longhairandbeard! Also can someone please tidy up the formatting mess I've made ;) Thanks 66.102.6.13617:58, 3 August 2006 (UTC) (srikeit editing from his cell)
Q20
Thanks guys! Let's move on to essay type questions on Indian history...Which historical Indian flag has a food item on it, and what's the story behind it? --Longhairandabeard19:20, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
Hint#1: It's a kind of bread.. The flag is actually somewhere on wikipedia and you can clearly see the food item on it, once you know what it is you are looking for.. --Longhairandabeard22:25, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
Okay I've done everything google, wikisearch, commons search & even peeked into your contribs :P (also got excited when I saw "flag" in one of your edit summaries but was disappointed to find it was a flag of Haryana) but have found nothing. Any more hints possible? --Srikeit(Talk | Email)03:36, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
One more clue before I go to sleep.. Hint#4: There is a blessing involved in the story, and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was instrumental in getting the last clause of the blessing to fruition (almost two centuries after the blessing). --Longhairandabeard04:57, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
The only flag I found with a foody thing on it is the Burmese one... and Victoria terminus has become an obsession with me for the past 24 hrs. --hydkat10:55, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
This is good! :evil grin: The flag is right under your collective noses with all these clues.. I can't wait to declare the answer and rub it in! But I'll wait a while and maybe confuse matters a little more with another tangential clue. Hint#5: A game played on horseback is also intimately involved with bringing the last clause of the blessing to fruition. --Longhairandabeard13:16, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
Let me clarify matters somewhat: The flag is on wikipedia but the story is not. It is truly a pan-Indian story, where a food item of one region and a personality of the same region are involved in a blessing regarding another region. Also, keep in mind that blessings with clauses (and involving food items!) do not always remain a blessing... --Longhairandabeard13:28, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
re-indenting> Here is the story of the Asafia flag... Asaf Jah 1 was a disciple of a sufi sain called Hazrat Nizamuddin Qutb-e-Deccan. According to a legend he once paid a visit to the saint while he was eating and the Saint invited him to join. Asaf Jah ate seven Kulchas and was asked to have another but he replied in the negative. The Hazrat then predicted: "You and your descendents will rule over the Deccan for seven generations." The Asafia flag bears the insignia of 'kulcha' which lends credence to this tale. History shows that the prophecy of the saint indeed came true with the end of Asafia Dynasty wit Mir Osman Ali Khan, the seventh nizam of Hyderabad.. --hydkat14:21, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
Right! This image is right on top of the Hyderabad State article. My source says it was Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya who blessed Asif Jah I. The Nizamuddin station of Delhi is named after him. He is also famed to have said 'Dilli Door Ast' (Delhi is far) when Ghiasudddin Tughlaq was coming to Delhi to do away with him. (Tughlaq was assassinated before entering Delhi.) To complete the string of clues, the last Nizam was ousted by Sardar Patel in Operation Polo, completing the prophecy. Good work, hydkat! I had a feeling you would be the first one to catch on the clues.. Over to you! --Longhairandabeard14:45, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
Btw.. I hope this q wasn't too drawn out.. It is only once in a while that such a obscure but interesting story can be told with so many tangential references! --Longhairandabeard14:57, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
Since hydkat is nowhere to be seen, I'll take the baton and ask the next question. It is said that every immigrant to this ancient city became rich within a few days of arriving in the city. What city, and how? --Longhairandabeard16:45, 5 August 2006 (UTC)
erm... sorry for being late... but powercuts are hard to beat in india... especially the ones that deal with blown up transformers :) I had a question ready but I guess this is ok. --hydkat17:13, 5 August 2006 (UTC)
Nope, none of these. The key thing here is that you wouldn't have to do anything to become rich. Hint: a particular group in North India believes very strongly in this legend. --Longhairandabeard19:17, 5 August 2006 (UTC)
Hint#3: Most of the residents of the city engaged in a particular occupation, and most of those belonging to the above group engage in the same occupation. --Longhairandabeard00:54, 6 August 2006 (UTC)
I won't be able to give any more clues till late night IST, nor verify the answer. If you get it, please go ahead with the next question. I hope this one will help. Hint: Think of a common surname of the trading community. --Longhairandabeard07:07, 6 August 2006 (UTC)
Well, I guessed that the community is Agrawal, and I knew that they claim descent from King Agrasen, but I did not know about the city of Agroha and I don't know about the legend. The Wikipedia article does not tell me anything, unfortunately. — Ravikiran12:24, 6 August 2006 (UTC)
Agroha is right. The legend is in the Haryana article. "Legend has it that anyone wishing to settle in the city was given a brick and a rupee by each of the city's one lakh residents. Thus, they would have enough bricks to build a house and enough money to start a business of their own." Go Ravikiran, your turn. --Longhairandabeard17:48, 6 August 2006 (UTC)
It looks like I will not have time to think of a question. Longhairandbeard, can you ask the next question please? — Ravikiran08:45, 7 August 2006 (UTC)
And I'm off to work on a bleeder I called in. If you have an answer, e-mail me after posting here; it's attached to my blackberry and it would amuse me signficantly. -- Samirधर्म10:26, 7 August 2006 (UTC)
Thanks, Srikeit! This question, for a change, I answered through a flash of brilliance (:-D) and only confirmed with a little googling. Since I seized hydkat's last turn, I promised him that he will get to do the same soon. Here's to you, hydkat.. Hope your transformer is working this time --Longhairandabeard03:52, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
This one is easy: I predict a answer in 30 minutes... Take a look at the Indian Navy Wikipedia page and tell me what needs to be done. :) --hydkat06:09, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
Well, red links need to be made blue, refs need to be fixed, article needs to be peer reviewed and ultimately get featured?:) -- Lost(talk)06:38, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
No... thats not what I was looking for... what is the emblem of the Navy btw? I thought it was the ashoka pillar. --hydkat07:10, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
I suspect Hydkat is trying to get a peer review thru this quiz ;) But well, here's what else needs to be done - hierarchy in Indian navy needs to be defined. Data needs to be updated, war heroes could be mentioned (all this after comparing with Indian Army) -- Lost(talk)07:12, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
I am trying, even made minor changes to the article, but need further hints to close this?? (scratching my head) -- Lost(talk)12:55, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
small mistake... a change was made and reverted... So its basically an interesting para to add about it. The question is still valid though :) --hydkat13:26, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
Is this the para you are looking for: 18 Mar 1952 is an important date in the maritime history of India. It was then that Chakravarti Rajagopalachari gave to the Indian Navy its motto - 'Shano Varuna' - meaning 'May the Lord of the Oceans be Auspicious Unto Us'. -- Lost(talk)13:29, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
I get a feeling that you might be referring to the flag of Navy. Do you think its the outdated one? Actually its not. In case this is not what you are referring to, then well, we'll keep trying... -- Lost(talk)13:34, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
re indenting I'll give it to you. No its not outdated: Its the newest version out of four ever used! (reverted back with changes in 2004 [14] & [15]) Regret the misunderstaning... I tried to avoid using the word 'change', and wanted to be sufficiently vague... guess that worked :) Looks like you get the lead. --hydkat13:43, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
Phew.. thanks Hydkat... Need to think up a nice last question. So pls dont expect a question before morning IST -- Lost(talk)18:14, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
Q25
Sorry guys, I couldnt come up with a tough one. So I'll try to jumble this easy one. An award was designed by a person. The first such award was given to the person's relative. Name another person from the same state who won the award -- Lost(talk)05:49, 9 August 2006 (UTC)
Cmon guys, I am off on a wikibreak from today evening, so I need this answered quickly. Hint 2: The award is very prestigious in India -- Lost(talk)07:57, 9 August 2006 (UTC)
The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.
