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| Quizzing in India |
| by Yashwant Saran |
| When Neil O’Brien conducted the country’s
first open quiz way back in 1967 in a small parish hall in Calcutta,
he would never have imagined that it would become the nation’s
most popular mindsport in just a few years. What started as an intellectual
game confined mostly to the city’s intelligentsia, soon became
the nation’s most popular mindsport. This ‘trivial pursuit’
which starts as a hobby for everyone soon becomes the very purpose
of existence for the avid quizzer. |
| In India, this game was introduced and popularised
by the British in the many clubs of Calcutta to entertain their families
in the evenings and on holidays. After their departure this was patronized
by the Anglo-Indian community in Calcutta who really made this game
accessible to the masses and general public. The quiz can rightly
be described as one of the positive impacts of the British legacy
in India. |
| It is in this context that one has to mention the
immense and commendable contribution of the O’Brien family in
popularizing this mindsport. Regarded as the first family of quizzing
in the country they were instrumental in getting Indians hooked on
to the game. The father, Neil, was an ace quizzer in his heydays.
His sons Derek, Andy and Barry are now the country’s most popular
quizmasters with Derek the most active among them. He has his own
company (Big Ideas) which has carved a niche for itself in conducting
quizzes in the country. He has been for years the friendly quizmaster
of the now famous Bournvita quiz contest on TV. BQC as the quiz is
fondly referred to by fellow quizzers is the first brush with quizzing
for most quizzers. Open only to schools it lays the foundation for
a long career in quizzing and is still the most keenly contested quiz
in the school circuit. |
| Derek changes roles and quizzes corporate executives
in the Economic Times sponsored ‘Brand Equity’ quiz. This
quiz, conducted with elan and panache by Derek, was a logical expression
of the need to give exposure to the intellectual potential of corporate
executives. |
| For many years Calcutta was the quizzing capital
of the country with as many as two to three contests per month being
held there. The leading corporate houses of the city sponsored many
quizzes there. (e.g. Bata, ITC, Nestle, Cadbury to name a few). It
was only in the mid 80’s that the sport went national. Quizzing
hit bigtime in India with the advent of Siddhartha Basu who conducted
the first inter college quiz contest ‘Quiz Time’ on Doordarshan.
During this period quizzing became more commercialized and professional.
The credit for that goes to Basu and his team who packaged the programme
well. Basu since then has conducted many quizzes on television including
the current BBC Mastermind India. |
| The game in its present form has become very competitive
and rewarding too. It not only attracts the best in the business but
rewards them well too. The lucre and the glitz have played an important
role in shaping the current format of quizzes. These days the prize
money runs into thousands not to forget the many freebies one gets
in the event of winning a quiz. In stark contrast were the early days
of quizzing in Calcutta when all we got were a few hundred rupee notes.
The game has benefited from its commercialization and with more and
more sponsors jumping on to the bandwagon the quest for ‘trivial
pursuits’ is here to stay in India. |
| In this age of the World Wide Web and Internet,
access to information and knowledge has become simple and easy. The
Quiz Club is one of the most sought after sites on the net. In just
over a year more than 1000 quizzers from all parts of the globe have
registered themselves as members of this active site. The satellite
channels have also played a pivotal role in popularising this great
sport. Channels like National Geographic, Discovery, BBC, CNN, History
etc., have opened new vistas for quizzers who now make full use of
this wonderful opportunity. These are not only informative but educative
as well. Syndicated columns in various leading newspapers and magazines
have also contributed a lot in the fast and widespread reach of this
game. |
| How to become a good quizzer |
| In this information age where there seems to be
an instant solution for every problem, there is no such thing as an
instant formula to become a good quizzer. Diligence and hard work
stand a quizzer in good stead as he or she grows up. Lets have a look
at the traits and qualities required to be a good quizzer: |
| • Voracious reading – This trait is
the most important feature of a good quizzer. You should read just
about everything under the sun, be a zealot and interested in all
types of subjects. Though it is difficult to read and assimilate everything
it is quite worthwhile to read the fundamental aspects of any discipline.
The hunger to read has to be nurtured and developed meticulously (even
if it means taking out a piece of paper from the dustbin and reading
it if it has appealed to you). |
| • Good memory retention – This again
is an important feature. One may read a lot but the resultant knowledge
will be of no use if it is not recalled at the right moment. In any
quiz, you have to recall information very fast and with fellow quizzers
breathing down your neck, there is very little margin for error. People
with elephantine memory get a wonderful opportunity to make use of
their natural talent. But this should not discourage those not so
gifted as there are many methods of having that skill. |
| • Intelligent guessing – Smart and intelligent
guesswork is sometimes more effective than just memory recall. There
have been many instances where intelligent guesswork has won the day
for a team. Those who feel that they have not been endowed with a
good memory can take this route to success. Here however the risk
factor is more. |
Every prospective quizzer should remember those
great lines by Alexander Pope:
"A little learning is a dangerous thing, Drink deep or taste not the
Pierian spring..." |
Man’s thirst for knowledge has made him perform
many arduous tasks but those who have performed those tasks have also
derived immense pleasure in the process. This great mindsport which
has caught the imagination of generations of followers is here to
stay and is all set to enchant, influence and attract those who have
not yet become addicted to it. I, conclude by quoting from Richard
Bach’s novel ‘Jonathan Livingstone Seagull’:
“Heaven is not a place... Heaven is not a time... Heaven is
pursuit of knowledge and trying to be perfect... The race to learn
has just begun...” |
| The author, an executive of Asco (India) Limited,
is one of the Sanmar group’s talented quizzers.
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