Quizzing

Singapore has no quizzing circuit to speak of. Its a nice place, and usually replicates home when you want it to (just go to little India on Sunday if you want to be pushed around by 1 million smelly people in search of a decent dosai). However, it has no quizzing. Being an impressionable first year I assumed that in absence of quizzing the next best thing must be debating because at least I get to keep reading and do something competitive. However, something was always missing, and my favorite pastime continued to be ignored through my two years here at college. It just didn't exist.

About a month ago, Ban (a second year who is similarly quiz starved) called me to check out the details for a quiz. In Singapore. Naturally, I was excited. The Tata Crucible thingummy, which they bill as India's largest biz quiz was going global and they had picked Singapore as their first stop. Okay, so it wasn't a general or lit-entertainment quiz but beggars can't be choosers and at that point I was willing to go for anything outside of an SMU college course which had the word Quiz attached to it. The quizmaster, Giri "Pickbrain" Insert-long-southie-name was familiar to ban, and he said that it would be a pretty decent quiz as well, lacking in the stupidities and arbitness that come with most corporately sponsored events who think calling Derek No-Brain or Siddharth "My Wife's A Child Molester" Basu.

So day before yesterday evening the day finally came, and my drought of close to two years ended: I went for a quiz. It was fun, the questions albietly were simple being dumbed down as the quiz master could have no realistic measure of the level of competition in Tiny Island Nation, and had not been exposed to the term "Kiasu". I think quizzing is perfect for Singapore, in that sense. In fact, scariness could happen if it really takes off, you'd have coaching classes for it and what not. The prelims were remarkably close, and we qualified in joint top position with 23/25. This is unheard of in a quiz, and the QM admitted to not having expected it. I think that's pretty tosh given how exceptionally simple some of the questions were, though it was fun yelling out "No Clues Please" to every second question.

The final rounds were well organised and presented. The man had a field day, an entire audience who had never before heard those standard quizmaster jokes that will now get brickbats back in India (My questions are easy, its only the answers that are difficult, and so on...). You could tell he was enjoying the attention.

For me, I was finally home. The adrenaline rush of being back on stage was one I've missed for far too long stuck in Tiny Island Nation. While debating does give you a kick, there's a special joy out of getting a question you know, or working out one that was at the back of your mind. Plus, the enthusiastic hive fives are something you have to give up in the interests of good parliamentary behavior during a debate (This may change, if I have my way about things).

Of course, the most fun bit was winning. I haven't won a quiz in two years, and the loot made up for it. Three and a half K in cash, along with an iPod Nano (the new one), a digicam and a watch and this is the best part... a VERY big foam check that I nicked and put up on my wall in my room.

Now I'm excited.