Which Indian Academy is promoting dance, drama and music?
Answer: D
It is the Sangeet Natak Akademi.
Established in 1953, it is the national academy for music, dance and drama, and its recognition is what defines a dance form as classical. Literature belongs to the Sahitya Akademi and the visual arts to the Lalit Kala Akademi.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Sayana, an important commentator on Vedas was associated with which among the following empires?
Answer: B
He was associated with the Vijayanagara empire.
Sayana was a minister under Bukka I and Harihara II in the fourteenth century, and with his brother Madhava produced the standard commentary on all four Vedas - still the basis of most translations.
Please log in or register to report this question.
First Jnanpith Award winner was from which of the following states?
Answer: B
The first winner was from Kerala.
G. Sankara Kurup received the first Jnanpith Award in 1965 for the Malayalam poem Odakkuzhal, 'The Bamboo Flute'.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Which among the following is the hallmark feature of the Dravida style of temple architecture?
Answer: C
It is the vimana.
In the Dravida style the tower over the sanctum rises in receding storeys to a domed finial. The gopurams over the enclosure gateways came later and eventually grew taller than the vimana, but the vimana is the defining element.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Bobbili veena, also known as Saraswathi Veena or the Ekanda Veena, is a large plucked string instrument used in Carnatic classical music. It is made from which of the following trees?
Answer: B
It is made from jackwood.
The Bobbili veena of Andhra Pradesh is carved from a single block of jackfruit wood - hence the name Ekanda, meaning one piece - resonator, neck and all, which is what gives it its sustained tone. It holds a GI tag.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Which chapter of Mahabharata deals with fruitless efforts to bring about peace between the Kurus and the Pandavas ?
Answer: C
It is the Udyoga Parva.
The fifth book of the Mahabharata covers the attempts at a settlement after the exile, including Krishna's embassy to Hastinapura, and ends with the failure of those efforts and the marshalling of the armies.
Please log in or register to report this question.
What is the earlier name of “Leh Singhe-Khababs Festival”?
Answer: C
It was earlier called Sindhu Darshan.
The festival at Leh, begun in 1997, celebrates the Indus; it was renamed Singhe-Khababs, the Tibetan name for the river, meaning 'coming from the lion's mouth'.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Which of the following is not a Char Dham?
Answer: C
Mansarovar is not.
The Char Dham named by Shankara are Badrinath in the north, Rameswaram in the south, Dwarka in the west and Puri in the east. Lake Mansarovar lies in Tibet, near Kailash, and is a place of pilgrimage but not one of the four.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Gundecha brothers are well known exponents of which among the following styles of Hindustani Classical Music ?
Answer: C
They are exponents of Dhrupad.
The Gundecha brothers sing in the Dagar style, the oldest surviving form of Hindustani vocal music, marked by an extended unmetred alap and a grave, meditative delivery.
Please log in or register to report this question.
In which state of India are 838 temples of a single religion found on one hill?
Answer: B
They are in Gujarat.
Shatrunjaya hill at Palitana carries some 863 Jain temples built over nine centuries, reached by about 3,800 steps. No one may stay on the hill overnight, not even a priest.
Please log in or register to report this question.
