As you might know, we have a fiercely competitive quiz contest going on right now: the Express News Quiz League (ENQL). Running since April 7, the ENQL sees thousands of readers battle it out each week to showcase their common sense, nose for the news and ability to think on their feet.
Understandably, this kind of intensity is not for everyone.
Our May quiz calendar will thus point you in a different direction — one that’s calmer, but still knee-deep in fun, intriguing trivia. In fact, there are many quiz contests this month that don’t require robust current affairs chops at all . Let’s explore your options.
Season 5 of FLQL returns in the form of two divergent roads (aka parallel quiz leagues) — an India track, and an International one. Both leagues will operate as online MIMIR quiz matches, drawn once a week. In the International league, you’ll face off on eclectic questions with players from six continents, while the India league promises a ‘delicious thali’ of GK on all things desi. The contest will run for nine weeks, starting May 29. Wordplay and finding unlikely connections plays a big role in the FLQL, so you might want to use our crossword as practice.
Registration: Paid, starting from Rs 1800 for new players with Rs 150 extra for a performance report. Sign up solo on the event form, and await further details on email.
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‘Tis the season for quiz leagues, and we’re seeing the birth of a new one with Season 1 of the Sports Quizzing League. Running for 10 weeks from May 21 to August 19, this online contest will deliver 25 questions on a different sports topic each week. To encourage participation, entry is free for students.
Registration: Sign up solo on the event form. Non-student players have an entry fee of Rs 100. For queries, contact sportsquizzingleague@gmail.com
Slated from May 22 to 26, this virtual program for kids aged 10-18 will cover the fundamentals of quizzing and building one’s curiosity. Xquizit Chennai, the e-quiz firm that’s carved a name for themselves in hosting, are the organisers. Here’s the schedule:
Day 1: Introduction to 5 Ws of quizzing, plus its history and essential skills
Day 2: Connecting the dots; finding subject crossovers and commonalities
Day 3: How to make learning fun, and use quizzes as a tool for education
Day 4: How to read a newspaper to prep, and identifying key info
Day 5: Quiz formats in detail: GK, picture and audio rounds, buzzer rounds, ending with a thrilling mock quiz
Registration: Paid, at Rs 1700 per participant. Sign up on bit.ly/xqicamp2023. The camp will run daily from 11.30am to 1pm.
Quizcraft Global is hosting their next pub quiz at Delhi’s Depot48 on May 14. Author Adittya Nath Mubayi, known for his cheeky and well-researched sets, will be the quizmaster, with the show starting at 6pm.
Registration: Call Depot48 at +91-9717450029 to book your table. Three to five members is a good group size for a shot at winning.
The Zephyr Quiz League has tied up with the Quiz Federation of India (QFI Chennai) to bring a written quiz of 15o questions on May 14. Running from 2–5pm, it will cover a breadth of topics and be held simultaneously in multiple cities. Solvers must finish the set in 90 minutes: a tall order, given that questions have been set by circuit icons like Major Chandrakant Nair, Dr. Navin Jayakumar, Venkatesh Srinivasan, and Sania Narulkar, among others.
Registration: Mostly free, with a nominal fee at some venues. Sign up on forms.gle/tRHhd2VCLTyeTAYr5 before May 11. To host a centre or become a proctor, write to zephyrquizleague@gmail.com
The qualifiers for the QFI Invitational Quiz are being held on May 14 from 10.30am to 12.30pm. This will be an all-ages, pan-India quiz contest for teams of three. Venues are yet to be confirmed, but will majorly coincide with ZQL’s Solo Written Quiz locations. The top five highest-scoring teams will be invited to take part in the national finals at QFIesta, the federation’s annual quiz festival, on August 13 and 14. Your quizmasters? Abid Abdulla, Kiran Vijayakumar, Rajagopal P.S. and Siddhanth Rao.
Registration: Free, via QFI’s signup form, which is yet to be released. See @quizfoundation on Twitter for updates. Interested quiz clubs can write to quizfoundation@gmail.com for details.
Illuminati, the quizzing society of Hansraj College, is holding their annual offline quizzing fest on May 6. Our younger readers could potentially participate in both events here, but make sure to clear out a full day before you drop by the campus:
> SELAMI Sandwich: This will be an under-25 quiz mixing Sports, Entertainment, Literature, Arts, Music and India questions. Open to college students, it will run from 9.30am to 1.30pm. For lone wolves.
> The Open General Quiz: An all-ages event hosted by quizmaster Aryapriya Ganguly (of FLQL notoriety), this will run from 1.30pm to 5.30pm. For lone wolves or teams of two.
Registration: Paid. Rs 30 for each quiz, and Rs 50 in total for both. Sign up on the fest’s form before the events begin.
Pune’s Sinhgad College of Engineering is hosting an IPL Quiz in three parts online. Running from May 9 to June 10, the quiz will be held on unstop.com with a mix of MCQs, true/false and open-ended questions on the IPL’s history as well as this year’s events. Each round will last 15 minutes, with 30 questions each.
Registration: Free. Sign up solo on the event page by 11.59pm on May 5.
IIM Rohtak’s Strategy and Consulting Club “aims to test the strategist” in players with a time-bound online quiz on consulting and business cases. Running from 7pm to 10pm on May 23, the quiz will have 20 questions to be solved in 15 minutes.
Registration: Free. Sign up solo on the event page by 6pm on May 23. For queries, contact snc@iimrohtak.ac.in
The Karnataka Quiz Association (KQA) will be hosting a general pub quiz in Bengaluru on May 17. Part of KQA’s fortnightly calendar, the quiz will be held at Drunkling Sizzlers & Pub, Koramangala from 8.30pm. Drop by on alternate Wednesdays for tipples and trivia.
Registration: Paid, at Rs 200 per person. Sign up on BookMyShow a few days before the event.
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India’s toughest business quiz is returning for college students this May. While the exact schedule for Tata Crucible isn’t out yet, registrations for the 2023 edition will likely open this month. The quiz is hosted annually by reputed quizmaster Giri ‘Pickbrain’ Balasubramaniam. For information on the event’s history, see tatacrucible.com
This is a developing story by Express Puzzles & Games, where we offer a daily crossword, three levels of sudoku and a weekly news quiz. Sign up to start playing, and follow @iepuzzles for updates!