Wordplay wars return to Delhi’s ‘Oktoberfest’

The feat was achieved by the team of Shashwat Salgaocar, Sourjo Sengupta and Debanjan Bose. Salgaocar, who hails from Panaji, is a regular offender at crossword events, having won the 11th edition of the Indian Crossword League in 2023.

The runners-up trailed almost 10 mins away, but among them, secured quick podium finishes that differed by seconds: Arijit Mondal, Debanjan Mahapatra and Balagopal Menon (24 mins 8 secs); Kaushik Chatterji, Prateek Vijayvarghia and Siddharth (24 mins 17 secs); and Shubhang, Aditya and Rohan (25 mins 47 secs). All four teams achieved a perfect all-kill in scores, their submission times becoming the tie-breaker.

Those curious about our contest puzzle (it covers culture, nature, entertainment and politics) can try it below. For a smaller everyday game to play with friends, you can try our Daily Mini. Beginners can visit our crossword guide for solving tips. If you don’t play brain games, and are wondering why old-school hobbies are suddenly trending, read this and this.

‘The 1-Down That Got Away’ was Express Puzzles’ third major crossword contest this year. In July, we hosted an inter-NIT event, introducing a pop culture crossword to four institutes in southern India. Three months prior, a citywide event for all-ages was held in Delhi at Hansraj College. For more events and alerts, you can follow @iepuzzles on Instagram. See you at the next one!

 

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