Interesting & Funny Facts:

  • India is the world’s second largest English speaking country, second only to USA
  • At Dal lake, the jewel of Kashmir, is India’s first and only floating post office. Of course we do have some floating hotels too, like the one in Poovar in Kerala & Kolkata
  • India is identified as the birthplace of Hinduism and Buddhism, the third and fourth largest religions
  • Losar festival (in Arunachal Pradesh) of Monpa Tribe, 5 people dance for continuous 12 hrs, break only for lunch
  • Loktak lake in Meghalaya is World’s only Floating sanctuary
  • Indians made significant advances in architecture (Taj Mahal), mathematics (the invention of zero) and medicine (Ayurveda) in ancient times
  • India has Largest number of vegetarians in the world
  • India is the largest producer of movies in the world
  • In India, there exists the concept of joint family, wherein the entire family (parents, wife, children and in some cases relatives), all live together
  • The world’s biggest congregation of humans visible from space: A mass pilgrimage of faith, Kumbh Mela (fair) witnesses around 100 million people from across the world.  According to a report, the 2011 Kumbh  Mela was so big with gathering of over 75 million people that it was visible from the space
  • The skeleton lake of India: Located at an altitude of over 5000 mt in Uttarakhand, Roopkund is known for its beauty. The enigma lies in the fact that hundreds of skeletons are found in the lake. Legend has it that the mass death occurred during a hailstorm when the ruler of Kanauj Raja Jasdhval was travelling with Rani Balampa, his queen
  • Arshid Ali Khan, a 13 year old boy from Punjab, is worshiped as the lord Hanuman due to his 7 inch long tail.  Khan has this tail since his birth. People visit him to resolve their problems and seek his blessings (Source Indiatimes)
  • The first rocket was so light and small that it was transported on a bicycle to the Thumba Launching Station in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.
  • The human calculator: Shakuntla Devi was given this title after she demonstrated the calculation of two 13 digit numbers: 7,686,369,774,870 X 2,465,099,745,779 which were picked at random. She answered correctly within 28 seconds.
  • Freddie Mercury and Ben Kingsley are both of Indian descent.
    • Freddie Mercury, the legendary singer of the rock band ‘Queen’ was born a Parsi with the name Farrokh Bulsara while the famous Oscar winning Hollywood star Ben Kingsley was born Krishna Pandit Bhanji.

Some Interesting Questions & Answers

 

Q: Who designed the Victoria Memorial at Calcutta?
A: The Victoria Memorial at Calcutta (now Kolkata) was designed by William Emerson

Q: Who designed city of Delhi and Chandigarh?
A: Edwin Lutyens (British) designed Delhi and Le Corbusier (French) designed Chandigarh

Q: Which places have been Portuguese & French territory in India?
A: Goa, Daman & Diu have been Portuguese colony while Pondicherry and Mahe were ruled by French

Q: Where did the Portuguese sailor Vasco da Gama land up in India in 1498? Who conquered Goa in 1510?
A: Vasco da Gama landed up in India at Calicut (Kozhikode). However, Afonso De Albuquerque conquered Goa later

Q: Taj Mahal and Red Fort in Agra were built by whom?
A: Shah Jehan the Mughal Emperor

Q: Where is the oldest standing fort located?
A: At Bandhavgarh wildlife sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh

Q: Number 0 and the game of chess were invented in which country?
A: Of course India!

Q: Which is the oldest living city in the world?
A: Varanasi or Banaras

Q: Where is one of the oldest residential universities ruins are located?
A: At Nalanda in Bihar, famous for Buddhist & Pali teachings

Q: Which of the following tombs is an imitation of the Taj Mahal?
A: Bibi ka Maqbara is an imitation of the Taj Mahal. At the same time, the Humayun’s tomb in Delhi is called the predecessor of Taj Mahal

Q: Which city is closest to the geographical center of India?
A: Nagpur is the city is closest to the geographical center of India

Q: Which is the highest peak in the Western Ghats? Where does Mount Everest lie?
A: The Anai Peak is the highest peak in the Western Ghats. In Nepal lies the highest peak in the world Mt. Everest (8848 mt).

Q: Which state in India has winter monsoon?
A: Tamil Nadu has Winter monsoon. Rest of the states get it during June – September usually

Q: Which classical Indian dance drama is traditionally performed by men?
A: Kathakali is the classical Indian dance traditionally performed by men

Q: Which is the famous mosque situated in New Delhi, that is also one of the largest in India?
A: Jama Masjid is the famous mosque in Old Delhi

Q: In which church of India is the mortal remains of St. Francis Xavier kept?
A: At Basilica of Bom Jesus, in Goa

Q: How many Indians have won the Nobel prize?
A: 6 Indians have won the Nobel prize (Rabindranath Tagore for literature, Sir CV Raman for science, Hargobind Khurana for medicine, Mother Theresa for peace, Amartya Sen for economics and Kailash Satyarthi for Peace. There is a list of several more people who won prize, being of Indian origin (but not Indian national)

Q: Which places in India are also called pink city, blue city, golden city?
A: Jaipur, Jodhpur & Jaisalmer respectively

Q: In which state would you find lions?
A: Lions can be found only in Gujarat at Gir forest