India is a country with a rich history and culture. It is the second most populous country in the world, and one of the oldest civilizations. India is known for its diverse religions, languages, and customs. There is a wide range of India trivia questions that can be asked, whether you're a history buff or someone who is curious about the country.
Here are some examples of India trivia questions you might come across: What is the capital of India? Who is the first Prime Minister of India? When did India gain independence from British rule? What is the meaning of the word "India"? These questions cover a wide range of India's history, politics, and culture, including its major cities, historical figures, and important events.
In addition to the history and politics of India, there are also many fun and interesting facts to learn about the country. For example, did you know that India has the world's largest democracy, with over 900 million people eligible to vote? Or that the word "India" comes from the Indus River, which flows through the country's northwest region? These trivia questions will not only test your knowledge, but also give you a glimpse into the many fascinating aspects of India, its people, and its culture.
225 India Trivia Questions Ranked From Easiest to Hardest (Updated for 2024)
- Despite its reputation as a manual on intercourse positions, it is in fact an ancient Indian Sanskrit text on the "art-of-living" including the nature of love, finding a partner, and more. What is the name of this old tome?
Answer: Kama Sutra
- Corridors to Mongolia and Russia, Pakistan, and Bangladesh and India are a few parts of the massive Belt and Road Initiative carried out over the past two decades by what ginormous country?
Answer: China
- Launched in April 2020, what streaming service from NBCUniversal shares its name with the national bird of India?
Answer: Peacock
- Promoted to his current cabinet-level position in 2017, Dharmendra Pradhan is the Minister of Education in what country?
Answer: India
- Ashtanga, Bikram, and Vinyasa are three of the more popular forms of what practice that originated in ancient India?
Answer: Yoga
- As part of an effort to break into the Indian market, Nike released the Air Zoom Yorker to target players of what sport?
Answer: Cricket
- You're going to need a bigger life raft: India's national animal is what fierce megafauna that anagrams to BEGGAR INLET?
Answer: Bengal tiger
- With approximately 1.4 billion people, what South Asian country is the world's largest democracy?
Answer: India
- As of 2023, nine countries have nuclear weapons (well, at least there are nine that we know have them), which makes up a global stockpile of 13,000 weapons. The countries: the U.S., Russia, France, China, the UK, Israel, Pakistan, North Korea, and which South Asian country?
Answer: India
- Practiced in the cultures of India, China, Persia, Sumeria and more for centuries but now roundly considered pseudoscience, the practice of chiromancy is the studying of the lines and lines of what body part?
Answer: Palm
- Punjab is a transnational region in South Asia encompassing eastern Pakistan and the northwest of which other country?
Answer: India
- Kashmir and English willow are the two most common materials for constructing what piece of cricket equipment?
Answer: Bat
- Indian Handia, Mexican Horchata, and Korean Makgeolli are drinks made from what grain that features in all three countries' cuisines?
Answer: Rice
- Which bay to the east of India shares a name with a tiger that’s natural habitat is along its coastline?
Answer: Bengal
- What is the four-letter word for a women's garment from India made of an unstitched drape up to nine meters in length that is typically wrapped around the waist with one end draped over the shoulder?
Answer: Sari
- A large portion of what 2001 Yann Martel novel features the title character stranded on a lifeboat after a shipwreck with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker?
Answer: Life of Pi
- Raj Ghat is a memorial in Delhi, India composed in part of a black marble platform. To what man is this memorial dedicated?
Answer: Mahatma Gandhi
- In 2018, Walmart acquired an 81% controlling stake in an Indian e-commerce company with an 8-letter name for $16 billion. What is this company, with a name sounding like it might occur during a temper tantrum in a Walmart parking lot?
Answer: Flipkart
- Bull surfing in a rice paddy, hanging out with monkeys at Hanuman’s Temple, and visiting a giant rock known as Krishna’s Butterball are some of Atlas Obscura’s many suggested activities in what country?
Answer: India
- With more than 500 million native speakers, what is the most commonly spoken language in India?
Answer: Hindi
- A relative of turmeric and a member of the Spice Girls, what spice is known in Indian cuisine as "adrak"?
Answer: Ginger
- As of the 2011 census, with 199 million people, what is the largest of India's 28 states?
Answer: Uttar Pradesh
- In the 2014 Disney sports movie “Million Dollar Arm,” two Indian cricket players are recruited to play baseball by an agent portrayed by what American actor, best known for playing Don Draper on “Mad Men?”
Answer: Jon Hamm
- Saag paneer is Indian cottage cheese cooked with any kind of green leafy vegetable; palak paneer means that the cheese has been cooked with what specific leafy green?
Answer: Spinach
- Mehndi is a form of body art and temporary skin decoration that originated in ancient India and is still popular today in many countries on the Indian subcontinent. The practice uses a pasted made from the leaves of what plant?
Answer: Henna
- What country’s national cricket team is known as the "Men in Blue"?
Answer: India
- What is the stonefruit that is the national fruit of India, Haiti, and the Philippines? Strangely enough, is also the summer national fruit of Pakistan. Using seasons to claim four different national fruits: brilliant.
Answer: Mango
- "One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India, and Indonesia" is the original subtitle of what bestselling 2006 memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert?
Answer: Eat, Pray, Love
- Starring Ram Shankar Nikumbh as an unconventional art teacher who helps dyslexic student Ishaan discover his potential, "Like Stars on Earth" is a 2007 film made in what country?
Answer: India
- What "H" is the name of both the fourth-largest city in India and the eighth-largest in Pakistan?
Answer: Hyperabad
- Named for parts of the structure resembling giant clusters of flower petals, the Lotus Temple is not only a Bahá'í House of Worship, but also one of the more prominent landmarks in what city in India?
Answer: New Delhi
- Spread out about 200km north of Jodhpur, the massive Badhla Solar Park services what country?
Answer: India
- Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was an Indian independence activist that served as the first holder of what central role in Indian politics? Nehru served in this role from 1947 to 1964.
Answer: Prime Minister
- The beginnings of yoga can be traced back 5,000 years to the Indus civilization of Northern India. In modern yoga exercises such as Ashtanga vinyasa yoga, "Ujjayi" refers to which core component of yoga practice?
Answer: Breath
- Located in the western state of Gujarat, Modhera bills itself as the first fully-solar village in what populous South Asian country?
Answer: India
- What country's bicameral legislature includes the Rajya Sabha, which represents the states, and a lower house, the Lok Sabha which represents the people of the country as a whole?
Answer: India - What style of beer, known for its "hoppy" character, was named for the country that imported it from Britain in the early to mid-1800s? The hops acted as a preservative on the voyage.
Answer: India Pale Ale
- The $600 million Zoji La tunnels project will connect the rest of India to its very militarized Himalayan border with what other superpower?
Answer: China
- What best-selling 2001 novel begins with Piscine Patel, an adult Canadian, discussing his childhood in India and specifically focusing on his father's zoo in Pondicherry?
Answer: Life of Pi
- Indian author Vikas Swarup wrote a 2005 novel titled "Q & A" involving a game show that was (loosely) adapted into a 2008 British film that later won the Academy Award for Best Picture. What was the name of the adaptation?
Answer: Slumdog Millionaire
- Which city is the largest in Telangana and also its capital, and is home to the Salar Jung Museum, Osmania University, and Charminar?
Answer: Hyderabad
- What former PepsiCo executive, born in the city now known as Chennai in India, was ranked as the second-most powerful woman in the world by Fortune magazine in both 2017 and 2019?
Answer: Indra Nooyi
- Amazon announced in October 2023 that its wind and solar projects make it the largest corporate buyer of renewable energy in what country, the world's largest democracy?
Answer: India
- Which term that refers to the scattering of the Sun’s light through a liquid or gas was named after the Indian scientist who discovered it and not the tasty noodle dish for which it is a homophone?
Answer: Raman
- Magnus Carlsen could tell you that the Sanskrit word chaturanga is the original word for what internationally famous board game which was invented in India?
Answer: Chess
- Widely believed to be the worst industrial accident in history, over 500,000 people were exposed to methyl isocyanate gas in 1984 at a pesticide plant in the city of Bhopal in what country?
Answer: India
- What Indian T-word dish of marinated and roasted chicken gets its name from the type of clay oven it is traditionally cooked in?
Answer: Tandoori Chicken
- Sushruta, who is known as the “Father of Plastic Surgery" for his development of surgical techniques, was an early surgeon from Kasi, an ancient kingdom located in the modern-day area of Uttar Pradesh in which Asian country?
Answer: India
- In 2023, a handful of countries including Argentina and the UAE were invited to join what economic summit, previously consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa?
Answer: BRICS
- At the top of Bleacher Report's top five cricket movies of all time is 2001's "Lagaan," which had the epic subtitle "Once Upon a Time in..." what country?
Answer: India
- Otus bengalensis is the scientific name for a type of eagle-owl collected in the northern part of what giant Southwest Asian country?
Answer: India
- What northernmost region of India was known by the Ancient Greeks as Kasperia and eventually became an important center of Hinduism and Buddhism? The area is also the title of a Led Zeppelin song that opens with the lyric "Oh, let the sun beat down upon my face."
Answer: Kashmir
- At a towering 406 feet, Nagarjuna Sagar Dam is the world’s tallest masonry dam built in 1969 in what heavily-populated Asian country?
Answer: India
- Known for leading the first European expedition to reach India by sea, the largest city in the state of Goa is named after which Portuguese explorer?
Answer: Vasco da Gama
- Located at the junction of the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are an administrative division of which country?
Answer: India
- After the United States and China, which country has the third-largest higher education system in the world?
Answer: India
- Which famous British author, the writer of “The Jungle Book” and “If”, was born in Mumbai in 1865?
Answer: Rudyard Kipling
- In 2011, a new Guinness World Record was established for the most number of toes on a newborn human. How many toes did this Indian child have? (must be within 2 of the correct answer)
Answer: 20 toes
- Although researchers aren't quite 100% confident, rice is thought to be first grown in the southern portion of what modern-day country?
Answer: India
- Deriving from the name of the village Naxalbari, a Naxalite is a member of a communist political organization in what country?
Answer: India
- In 1959, Dr. King traveled to Raj Ghat in Delhi, India, to lay a wreath in honor of what other nonviolent activist, a source of much inspiration to Dr. King?
Answer: Mahatma Gandhi
- What is the five-letter name of the cannabis-based drink, popular in India, which of traditionally served during holidays of Maha Shivaratri and Holi?
Answer: Bhang
- What is the two-word name for governmental program launched in 2015 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure their country’s online infrastructure can access government services?
Answer: Digital India
- The Star of Adam, the Black Star of Queensland, and the Star of India, are the three largest known examples of what precious gemstone, which is generally blue in color?
Answer: Sapphire - The Mumbai franchise in the Indian Premier League of Cricket has what team name? It makes sense, given the country they play in.
Answer: Mumbai Indians
- What country has the most cultivated land area in the world? Their major agricultural products include pulses, milk, jute, and rice.
Answer: India
- Rajendra the First of what “C” Tamil Indian empire invaded Singapore in the 11th century and ruled the country for a couple decades?
Answer: Chola Empire
- Which type of wooden boat, a cultural symbol of the Indian region of Kashmir, has a name which is an anagram of the name of a Colombian singer born in 1977? (Hint: the location of the consonants is the same in both names.)
Answer: Shikara
- “Rajasthan Patrika” and “Punjab Kesari” are both broadsheet newspapers published in which country?
Answer: India
- Kampatimar Shankariya, an Indian serial killer of the 1970s, was known for hitting his victims with what construction tool? The tool is more commonly used to hit nails into place.
Answer: Hammer
- Originally named Hailey National Park, India's first national park is now named for which naturalist who also wrote several books about his experiences hunting down man-eating tigers and leopards?
Answer: Jim Corbett
- What enormous antelope, whose name means "blue cow" in Hindi, can be found throughout northern India?
Answer: Nilgai
- Which politician has been the President of India since July of 2022, and is also the youngest person ever to hold the office?
Answer: Droupadi Murmu
- Which city is the capital of Madhya Pradesh and is known as the “City of Lakes?”
Answer: Bhopal
- Although its legal status is disputed, the McMahon Line forms part of the de facto boundary between India and which other country?
Answer: China
- Sometimes referred to as the "First city of Dehli", what is the name of the fortified complex that is home to the Qutb Minar complex?
Answer: Lal Kot
- In 2008, which over 100-year-old American automaker sold its former UK brands Jaguar and Land Rover to India’s Tata Motors?
Answer: Ford
- In 2007 it was "Limited" on film. What type of tea, named after the Indian district from which it comes, is marketed as “The Champagne of Teas”?
Answer: Darjeeling
- A group of 30 rock-cut caves in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra state, which contain some of the best-preserved examples of ancient Indian, have what name?
Answer: Ajanta Caves
- India is one of the few countries in the world that’s deemed biologically “megadiverse.” In fact, almost a quarter of its land is covered by which kind of tree-heavy biome?
Answer: Forest
- The Hindu deities Brahma, Vishnu, and Lakshmi are commonly depicted in religious art as sitting or standing on what flower, now the national flower of India?
Answer: Lotus
- Kharif crops, including chili peppers, mangos, and rice, are ones planted from June to November, known as what specific "season" in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh?
Answer: Monsoon Season
- In 2020, Neeraj Chopra became the first track and field athlete to win an Olympic gold medal for India when he won which event, which is also part of the decathlon?
Answer: Javelin
- It is the only place in the world outside of Africa to see them in the wild. Gir National Park in Gujarat is home to over 600 of what animals in the genus Panthera?
Answer: Lions
- As of 2023, who is the current Vice President of India and also the first VP to be born after the country gained independence?
Answer: Jagdeep Dhankhar
- Recording their best ever medal haul, how many overall medals did India win at the 2020 Olympics, which were held in 2021?
Answer: 7
- What of Lok Sabha constituency is currently held by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi? It is one of the 80 seats found in the Northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh
Answer: Varanasi
- Named after a surveyor with the East India Company, what is the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, an Indian union territory found in the Bay of Bengal?
Answer: Port Blair - The Star of India is a 563-carat, golf ball-sized specimen of which gem (in fact, the biggest one in the world)?
Answer: Sapphire
- Inaugurated in 2020, Motera stadium, the world’s largest cricket venue, is in which Indian city?
Answer: Ahmedabad
- The Mughal Empire, which lasted in India from the early 16th century until the mid-19th century, was founded by what military leader who had been born under the name Zahir ud-Din Muhammad in what is now Uzbekistan? The more well-known nickname is derived from the Persian word for "tiger."
Answer: Babur
- What diamond, owned by the British crown, is currently the subject of demands for return by India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan? The gem was acquired by Britain during the reign of Queen Victoria.
Answer: Koh-i-noor
- The first time they were held in the region, New Delhi hosted the Commonwealth Games in which year?
Answer: 2010
- Consistently one of the largest cities in India, and host of the 2011 Cricket World Cup final, Bombay officially changed its name to Mumbai in which year?
Answer: 1995
- Being the most recent Indian winner, Abhijit Banerjee won his Nobel Prize in 2019 in which of the six possible categories?
Answer: Economics
- According to the U.S. State Department's website, one of its activities is working with India and Pakistan to resolve issues between these two countries, including nuclear arms and the status of what disputed region? The region in question currently is divided into areas controlled by India, Pakistan, and China.
Answer: Kashmir
- Which mountain in the Himalayas is the highest in India and the third-highest in the world at 28,169 feet?
Answer: Kangchenjunga
- What holy river in India starts in the Gangotri Glacier?
Answer: Ganges
- Scoring 92 goals in 140 games and having more than triple second place, who is the leading goal scorer in the history of the Indian football/soccer team?
Answer: Sunil Chhetri
- Having been born in British India, and emigrating to the United States, Har Gobind Khurana won a Nobel Prize in 1968 in which category?
Answer: Medicine
- Proposing a more nuanced definition than simply living below an arbitrarily chosen income level, "Poverty: An Ordinal Measurement" is a 1976 paper by what Nobel Prize-winning Indian economist?
Answer: Amartya Sen
- Droupadi Murmu is the second woman to hold office as India’s president. Who was the first woman, elected in 2007?
Answer: Pratibha Patil
- While LystLoc’s CEO is U.S.-based, you’ll also find part of the team in what city in India?
Answer: Chennai
- The namesake of a type of fabric, what is the former colonial-era name of Chennai, India, the city where Lystloc's engineering, marketing, and sales teams are based?
Answer: Madras
- The Golden Temple at Amritsar, also known as the Harimandir Sahib, is one of the holiest sites in what religion, which has 25-30 million adherents worldwide?
Answer: Sikhism
- What Catholic missionary and founder of the Jesuits is preserved at the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Portuguese-colonized Goa, India?
Answer: Francis Xavier
- What is the four-letter name of the Indian festival that celebrates the arrival of spring and is characterized by the throwing of colored powders and water?
Answer: Holi
- Based on a classic story of a Taoist monkey who travels to India to bring back sacred scriptures, "The Monkey King" was a 6-minute-long Pepsi ad that was wildly successful in 2016 in what country?
Answer: China
- The planned city of Chandigarh, India was a showcase for the ideas of what 20th-century architect, builder, and urban planner, who was born Charles-Édouard Jeanneret?
Answer: Le Corbusier
- Successfully touching down on August 22, 2023, India's Chandrayaan-3 moon mission was the first to land in what region of the lunar surface?
Answer: South Pole
- While the country with the largest university is perhaps unsurprisingly India, the country with the second largest university is what other Asian country?
Answer: Bangladesh
Answer: The Golden Bachelor
- Which Indian tenor singer has degrees in natural sciences from both Delhi and Cambridge universities?
Answer: Anando Mukerjee
- What was the official margin of victory when India defeated Australia in their first match in the 2023 Cricket World Cup?
Answer: 6 Wickets
- What beautiful structure in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, was built for Shia Muslims in 1838 by Muhammed Ali Shah, the Nawab of Awadh, and is now the final resting place for him and his mother?
Answer: Chhota Imambara
- What was the name of the communities, realms and kingdoms of India's Vedic period (1500 BCE to 500 BCE)?
Answer: Janapadas
- What medieval Rajasthan city, located in the middle of the Thar desert, is known as the "Golden City," due to its buildings all being made of yellow sandstone?
Answer: Jaisalmer
- Native to northern India, Changthangi is a breed of what type of “C” goat whose thick undercoat is used to create a luxurious and fine form of wool?
Answer: Cashmere
- What name is given to the people who deliver piping hot, tasty, lunchbox meals to people working in India?
Answer: Dabbawala
- What vibrant bird, scientific name Pavo cristatus, is the national bird of India, having been designated as such in 1963?
Answer: Peacock
- Which player scored a century against India in India’s defeat in the 2023 Cricket World Cup final against Australia?
Answer: Travis Head
- What trench, located off the coast of Indonesia, contains the deepest point in the Indian Ocean, with a depth of 25,344 feet?
Answer: Sunda Trench
- With a population of 600,000, what state--home to both alpine and subtropical climates and impressive biodiversity--is the least populous of all Indian states?
Answer: Sikkim
- Bhang, a ground paste used in Indian food and drinks, including lassi and thandai, can be traced back to as early as 1000 BCE and is made from what plant?
Answer: Cannabis
- Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu are the primary coffee growing regions in what Asian nation?
Answer: India
- The three countries who were drawn in India’s group at the 2024 AFC Asian Cup football tournament are Australia, Syria and which other country?
Answer: Uzbekistan
- What year did Indira Gandhi begin her first stint as the Prime Minister of India?
Answer: 1966
- What Asian country – whose national flag features a blue 24-spoke Ashoka Chakra wheel in its center – is the world’s largest producer of milk?
Answer: India
- When speaking in English, the name of this animal shares its name with a country. In French and Russian, the animal has a name meaning "from India" or "bird of India." And in Portuguese the animal is named "peru" deriving from the eponymous country. What is this confusingly named animal?
Answer: Turkey
- In Hindu mythology, the hero Rama is the seventh avatar of what god who is the preserver and protector of the universe?
Answer: Vishnu
- Which language that starts with P is one of the main languages in India and Pakistan and has more than 113 million speakers? (Hint: The name originates from the Persian phrase for the “Five Waters” of the Indus River tributaries)
Answer: Punjabi
- The Hindu god of love Kamadeva shoots flower arrows from a sugarcane bow frequently strung with what type of sweet insects?
Answer: Bees
- Before the project got sidelined by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Coimbatore Integrated Bus Terminus was slated to become the largest bus terminal in the world—it will be about 61 acres in area when it’s done being built. What country is it in? (Hint: The country is already home to the largest bust station in Asia)
Answer: India
- A chawl is a residential building, similar to a tenement, found in the western region of what Asian nation?
Answer: India
- Found in India and in developing countries, by what hyphenated name are auto rickshaws more commonly known?
Answer: Tuk-tuk
- The Carabao, or Manila, is a particularly sweet variety of what national fruit of India, Pakistan, and the Philippines?
Answer: Mango
- Roman emperors called this fabric “woven winds” and Mogul emperors called the fabrics “morning dew” and “cloth of running water.” What was this fabric that was first spun and woven in India?
Answer: Cotton
- The northernmost geographical region in the Indian subcontinent had its first Muslim ruler (Shah Mir) in 1339. What is the name of this region?
Answer: Kashmir
- Abbreviated UP for short, what Indian state's official seal depicts the confluence of the Ganga and Yamuna rivers, as well as two fish that represent the area's former Muslim rulers?
Answer: Uttar Pradesh
- The third-largest city in India is also the capital of the state of Karnataka. What is this city in south India? As a hint, the city shares the same first four letters with the 8th most populous country in the world.
Answer: Bangalore
- The small Indian village of Ghuar Moti holds the claim to fame as the westernmost point in India. It is located in which Indian state?
Answer: Gujarat
- Which Indian city on banks of Yamuna River in state of Uttar Pradesh is the location of the Taj Mahal?
Answer: Agra
- The legendary India Pale Ale was the solution that brought beer from India to Britain, aging it in order to survive what weather condition?
Answer: Heat
- What was the surname of the first Viceroy of India after whom a small but historically significant hill in the Central Area of Singapore, also known as Government Hill or Bukit Larangan, is named?
Answer: Canning
- Which city in India is the capital of Rajasthan and is nicknamed “the Pink City” because of the hue of most of its architecture, as well as “the Paris of India” given its many tourist attractions?
Answer: Jaipur
- Which city in northern India has its own cultural festival (Mahotsav) every year to celebrate Uttar Pradesh art? (Hint: Its name might make you think of being fortunate, by chance, at this very moment).
Answer: Lucknow
- Following Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposal of the concept three months prior, the U.N. general assembly in December 2014 officially declared June 21 as the “International Day of” what system of exercises that’s also a well-known theistic Hindu philosophy?
Answer: Yoga
- The country of India has three national animals. Two of them live on the land or air. One does not. What is it?
Answer: River dolphin
- Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and Adrien Brody play brothers traveling across India via a train in what 2007 film directed by Wes Anderson?
Answer: The Darjeeling Limited
- What cricket team, representing the Indian state in its name, won the Ranji Trophy in 2017, the club’s first?
Answer: Gujarat
- Which classical Indo-Aryan language is one of India’s official languages and is mostly spoken in Odisha?
Answer: Odia
- There is a "cross and circle" board game with Indian origins that also has an Americanized brand name owned by Parker Brothers. This game involves two dice, four pieces per player and a gameboard with a track around the outside. Name either the Indian name or the Americanized name.
Answer: Parcheesi or Pachisi
- All Mughal emperors were practitioners of what religion? The empire's peak is often considered the 17th and 18th century when it ruled over nearly all of the Indian subcontinent.
Answer: Islam
- In parts of South Asia such as India, coir is a common material used to make mattresses. This thin natural fiber is extracted from the outer husk of what plant?
Answer: Coconut
- A place named Vasco de Gama is the most populous city in what Indian state, which is also the state with the shortest name?
Answer: Goa
- Only one of the seven countries that borders India has a population with less than one million people. This country famously measures "gross national happiness" and has Thimphu as its capital city. What is this country?
Answer: Bhutan
- The stock market indices that are named NIFTY (such as the NIFTY 50) are from which Asian country? This country has been earmarked as one of the biggest emerging economies of the world.
Answer: India
- The Ganges River famously flows through India, but after passing through the waters of India, what country does the river enter next?
Answer: Bangladesh
- Akbar is often considered the greatest of the Mogul emperors. Although his domain expanded rapidly, the area where he first ruled is in what present-day country?
Answer: India
- What is the common four-letter name for the Azadirachta indica tree that is native to the Indian subcontinent? This tree is typically grown in tropical regions, its fruits and seeds are commonly used for a namesake oil, and it is also commonly used as a natural alternative to synthetic pesticides.
Answer: Neem tree
- In what country was Gautama Buddha said to have been born? Hint: the country neighbors India.
Answer: Nepal
- Shampoo was invented in India, and the traditional method used herbs rather than commercial liquids. The word itself comes from the Sanskrit word "champu" which means what? This meaning is a key part of a successful shampoo activity.
Answer: Massage
- The first batsman to score a double century in a One Day International is what Indian dude with the awesome nickname "Master Blaster"?
Answer: Sachin Tendulkar
- Tamil Nadu-born Viswanathan Anand was considered the best in the world at what activity from 2007 to 2013, until losing to by Norwegian Magnus Carlsen?
Answer: Chess
- What cricket team has been the most successful in the Indian Premier League, winning the championship in five of fifteen seasons, as of 2022?
Answer: Mumbai Indians
- Cleveland's Thyagaraja Festival is dedicated to the classical music of what country, and is the largest such festival outside that country?
Answer: India
- One of the most popular Indian films of 2022, what Telugu-language action epic directed by S.S. Rajamouli has a title that, in English, is a letter of the alphabet repeated three times?
Answer: RRR
- The Himalayas, the Ghats and the Karakoram are mountain ranges in which country that is named after a river?
Answer: India
- When India won the Cricket World Cup (then called the Prudential Cup) in 1983, what country hosted the knockout stage of the competition?
Answer: England
- What Hindi or Urdu word refers to pulses like dried, split pulses, like lentils and beans, that form an important staple for the cuisines of the Indian subcontinent?
Answer: Dal
- Nicknamed largely because of its sanctum was overlaid with a metallic foil in 1830, what is the two-word English-language nickname for Harmandir Sahib (the preeminent spiritual site of Sikhism)?
Answer: Golden Temple
- The Sanskrit word meaning "to massage" is the genesis for what hygiene-associated English word?
Answer: Shampoo
- An Indian meal which included "masoor" would have what ingredient?
Answer: Lentils
- What female Indian prime minister is the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India?
Answer: Indira Gandhi
- What country lost connection with its lunar lander only 1.3 miles from the lunar surface in September 2019? The "Vikram" lander was discovered as having landed days later.
Answer: India
- In 1974 which country successfully detonated a nuclear bomb as part of "Operation Smiling Buddha", subsequently becoming the second Asian country after China to declare possession of nuclear weapons?
Answer: India
- With the currency introduced in 1947 as the official currency, what is the three-letter International Organization for Standardization currency code for the Indian rupee?
Answer: INR
- What city on the east coast of India was known as Madras until changing its name in 1996?
Answer: Chennai
- As of the 2011 Census, the most common first language spoken in India is Hindi, with 44% of the population. With one guess, name either the 2nd or 3rd most common "first language" spoken in India, at 8% and 7% respectively.
Answer: Bengali and Marathi
- A crepe-like batter that is cooked thin and stuffed with fillings such as potatoes, onions, and cheese typically form part of the Southern Indian and Sri Lankan diets. What is the four-letter English name for this food?
Answer: Dosa
- An empire in South Asia ruled much of contemporary India for much of the period from 1526-1857, starting with the rule of Babur. What was the name of this empire? Note: don't confuse your answer with a similarly named group located further north in Asia.
Answer: Mughal Empire
- Which national capital city is geographically closest to India's New Delhi?
Answer: Islamabad
- On the reverse side of the Indian 500 rupee note is an image of what colorful building in the city of Delhi that was the historic residence of the Mughal Emperors?
Answer: Red Fort
- Which village in Meghalaya is considered the “wettest place on Earth” by Guinness because it gets a whopping (or rather, wetting) 467 inches of rain a year, on average?
Answer: Mawsynram
- Which Bengali poet and polymath became the first non-European to win the Nobel Prize for Literature when it was awarded to him in 1913 for his work "Gitanjali"?
Answer: Rabindranath Tagore
- Worth an estimated US$25.3 billion each year, the biggest exports to come from India is refined what?
Answer: Petroleum
- Used frequently in the classical Carnatic music genre of South India, the swarabat is a musical instrument from what family of instruments?
Answer: Strings
- City Montessori, the world's largest secondary school, is located in Lucknow in what Asian country?
Answer: India
- Mumbai has the highest population density of what big cat? These cats are found in both Asia and Africa.
Answer: Leopards
- Since 2016, the Sacramento Kings have been owned by what TIBCO Software founder and first person of Indian descent to own an NBA team?
Answer: Vivek Ranadivé
- Set in the Indian state of Kerala, what "divine" 1997 debut novel by Arundhati Roy won a Man Booker Prize?
Answer: The God of Small Things
- Homer is photographed cavorting with a belly dancer with what name that suggests she might be royalty from somewhere around the India-Pakistan border?
Answer: Princess Kashmir
- In 2021, Damien Wright took over as the bowling coach of what regal Indian Premier League team that dropped Roman numerals from their name in 2020?
Answer: Punjab Kings
- What Sanskrit epic of ancient India tells the story of the legendary prince of Ayodhya, husband of Sita and seventh avatar of the god Vishnu?
Answer: Ramayana
- Which desert in northwest India, the world’s 20th largest desert by area, forms a natural border between India and Pakistan?
Answer: Thar Desert
- What 2022 action drama, about the friendship between two Indian revolutionaries, became the third highest-grossing Indian film of all time, and the second highest-grossing Telugu film?
Answer: RRR
- Also known as Saptakoshi, which river is often called the "Sorrow of Bihar" due to its frequent floods?
Answer: The Kosi
- A bid has been mooted to host the 2036 Summer Olympics. What city has been suggested as the main point as a result of its stadium?
Answer: Ahmedabad
- Which Indian tech company used to be known as AdventNet has offered a business suite and CRM since 2005, which includes its popular payroll software? (Hint: With its current name, you’ll find it in the latter half of the alphabet)
Answer: Zoho
- Erected at the location where Buddha is said to have reached enlightenment, Mahabodhi Temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in which Indian state?
Answer: Bihar
- According to the 2011 census, which Dravidian language is the fourth most common in India with 81 million speakers, mostly in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana where it’s the official language?
Answer: Telugu
- What common name does India’s national flag go by, referring to its white, green, and orange hues?
Answer: The Tricolor
- Indian politician (and the country's second prime minister) Lal Bahadur Shastri famously promoted the White Revolution which was a national campaign focused on the production of what item?
Answer: Milk
- What fabric material was first spun in India and referred to by Roman emperors as “woven winds” and by Mogul emperors as “morning dew” or “cloth of running water"?
Answer: Cotton
- Frequently referred to as a backwards episode because of its reverse chronology, the 9th season episode "The Betrayal" feature Elaine, Jerry, and Georgia in what international location?
Answer: India
- Mahatma Gandhi was born in the town of Porbandar in which modern-day Indian state?
Answer: Gujarat
- In the 2010s, the size of photovoltaic power stations to generate and store solar energy has increased dramatically. Back in 2012, the largest project to-date was completed in Arizona and had a capacity of 247 MegaWatts. Only eight years later, there are now two power stations with capacity for more than 2,000 MegaWatts each, both of which are located in what country?
Answer: India
- Which Dravidian language is one of the longest surviving classical languages in the world ,and was the first to be classified as a classical language of India?
Answer: Tamil
- Sharing a first name with JFK, what noted economist served as ambassador to India during JFK's presidency?
Answer: John Kenneth Galbraith
- Although the company only launched to the public less than four years ago, there is an Indian telecommunications company headquartered in Mumbai that is the largest mobile network operator in India and the third largest mobile network operator in the world. What is the three-letter name of this massive communication provider in the world's second most populous country?
Answer: Jio
- Himalayan populations in Nepal, Tibet, and northern India traditionally blend what savory ingredient into both their coffee and tea?
Answer: Butter
- Prior to a December 2018 name change, what was the alliterative name of the Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League?
Answer: Delhi Daredevils
- The Shalihotra Samhita was an Indian veterinary treatise from the 3rd century BC, an edict from what emperor of the Mauryan dynasty? This “A” emperor promised that medicine would be available to both people and animals.
Answer: Ashoka
- In 1984, Singapore's national men's football team made its only appearance to date at the AFC Asian Cup. They only won a single match at the tournament, but it was quite an achievement given it was against which country who had a population over 280 times Singapore's at the time?
Answer: India
- A block-printed fabric from India became so popular in 19th century England that the market was flooded with low-quality knockoffs, and the fabric’s name came to mean a “cheap imitation.” What’s the name of this fabric?
Answer: Chintz
- According to Yuvrat Singh's "Test of My Life," a character from the comic "Champak" is the source of what blushable nickname of cricketer Virat Kohli?
Answer: Cheeku
- Which app that was founded by Sanjay Jha and Shanti Mohan in 2013 is India’s most popular platform for startups looking to get investors?
Answer: LetsVenture
- How many spokes does the Ashoka Chakra have, which is found on the Indian flag?
Answer: 24
- Mrs. Rupa Mehra is determined to arrange her daughter's marriage in what nearly-1500-page Vikram Seth novel set in a newly independent India?
Answer: A Suitable Boy
- What influential American composer worked for a while in the mid-1960s as an assistant to famed Indian composer and sitarist Ravi Shankar, transcribing Shankar's music so it could be played by Western musicians?
Answer: Philip Glass
- Which Indo-Aryan language is spoken in India and Nepal and includes several dialects (Northern Standard, Southern Standard, Western Standard, and Nagpuria?
Answer: Bhojpuri
- "Selection Day" is a 2016 novel about a young cricket star by what Indian author whose debut novel "White Tiger" won a Man Booker Prize?
Answer: Aravind Adiga
- Both native to India, the Marwari and Kathiawari breeds of horses are notable for having what part of their bodies show a distinctive and unusual curve?
Answer: Ears
- #ArmpitGate was a brief 2016 scandal when the Indian edition of what magazine was accused of smoothing and whitening Priyanka Chopra's underarm on their cover?
Answer: Maxim
- Which Sino-Tibetan language is spoken in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh, and is an official language of Assam?
Answer: Bodo
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Eli Robinson is the Chief Trivia Officer at Water Cooler Trivia. He was once in a Bruce Springsteen cover band called F Street Band.