1. Which veteran film actor and Congressman started his own party called Thamizhaga Munnetra Munnani in 1988? It was short-lived and after a disastrous showing in the elections, he dissolved his party and merged it with the Janata Dal.
2. Which pair of siblings, who have played international cricket, have also donned the CSK colours?
3. The group was started under Sub-Inspector of Police Kanniah Naidu in 1951 and is the oldest in India. It was set up in the CB-CID buildings on Mount Road with two members from England and was shifted to Egmore in 1957. Their expertise lies in explosives, crime investigation and narcotics. Which group is this?
4. Which 1965 MGR starrer did Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa describe as a milestone in her political career? The film was re-released in March 2014 in a digitised format.
5. The Women’s Indian Association was founded in 1917. It was India’s first major feminist organisation with Dr Annie Besant as its first president. Among its founders was Dr Muthulakshmi Reddi. Besides the uplift of women, the WIA helped the formation of a world renowned medical facility in Madras. Which facility is this whose name includes the name of the WIA?
6. This organisation was located on the fourth floor of a building at No 1 China Bazar Road from 1940 to the 1950s before it moved to its present location in 1969 on land that was leased from St George’s Cathedral, near the Anna Flyover. Name the organisation and the building at No 1 China Bazar Road.
7. A stretch of this road was selected as the “guinea pig” for the concrete roads initiative of the Chennai Corporation. It resulted in traffic diversion for a month. Which road is this? How is this “white topping” of roads considered “electricity saving”?
8. They can be considered the first family of cricket in Madras. The father played first class cricket while his sons played Test cricket for India. The family migrated to Madras from Amritsar in 1908. Who was the ‘founder’ of this family? Considering their roots from Punjab, their names were unusually written. Why?
9. This painting titled Blessed are the Peacemakers is by a famed artist who established the Artists Village at Cholamandalam in Madras. It hangs in Raj Bhavan. Rajaji, on seeing the painting, complimented the artist but offered him two suggestions: (1) Clothe the nude figures below Gandhi with some rags (2) Give the painting an Indian name. Name the artist. By what name from the Upanishads is this painting also known as?
10. Hotel D’Angelis, the premier hotel in South India, opened in 1908. Its owner Giacomo D’Angelis was from Sicily. In 1910, inspired by a pioneering feat in Europe in 1909 that won a certain Frenchman a 1000-pound prize offered by the Daily Mail, he performed this act for the first time in Madras at the Island Grounds, charging an entrance fee to this extraordinary demonstration. What did Giacomo D’Angelis do? Who was the Frenchman?
11. She was the first artiste to be heard on AIR Madras on August 15, 1947. She went to the radio station late in the night and rendered one of her most popular songs, Aaduvome pallu paduvome. Who is this legend who had a stamp commemorating her a few days ago?
12. The British started Officers Training Academies to meet the huge demand for officers to serve in the Indian and Commonwealth armies during World War II. However, these schools were closed down at the end of the war. In the aftermath of what did India re-establish these institutions in Chennai and Pune in 1962?
13. Royal Enfield is the oldest motorcycle brand in the world still in production (at Thiruvottriyur) with the Bullet model enjoying the longest motorcycle production run of all time. Why was the Bullet motorcycle nam-ed so?
14. What is unique about The Musalman, a newspaper published since 1927 in a small office on Triplicane High Road?
15. Dr Ronald Ross was posted to Madras, Andamans and Burma when he joined the Indian Medical Service in 1881. He is best known for his discovery regarding the spread of malaria. His landmark discovery almost never happened as he threatened to resign when the IMS transferred him from Madras to Rajputana around 1895. Why did he not want to go to Rajputana?
Answers
1. Sivaji Ganesan
2. Mike and Dave Hussey
3. Dog Squad
4. Aayirathil Oruvan
5. Cancer Institute (WIA), Adyar
6. US Consulate / Dare House, the HQ of Parrys
7. Velachery Main Road / White top reflects light better and so street lights can be dimmer, thus saving power.
8. AG Ram Singh. They followed the South Indian naming convention. Initials had native place and father’s name – Amritsar Govindsingh Ram Singh.
9. KCS Paniker. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti
10. He piloted the first aeroplane in India, a bi-plane first tested in Pallavaram. The Frenchman, Louis Blériot, was the first to fly across the English Cha-nnel.
11. DK Pattamal
12. India China War
13. Royal Enfield was originally an armaments company. Its logo was a cannon. Its motto: Made like a gun, goes like a bullet. Hence the name, Bullet.
14. It is the world’s only hand-written newspaper.
15. Because Malaria was common in Madras and the neighbouring regions, whereas Rajputana was malaria-free!