2013

THE KEY TO SUCCESS IN KBC - PART 18 INDIAN CULTURE and FLAGS OF THE WORLD
Including FOLK DANCES, FESTIVALS, MELAS, POETS etc. Know about the Culture of India including Forest Area, Indian Cuisine, Folk Dances, Festivals and Melas, Mahotsav, Poets and Writers, Indian political Authors and their Books, Flags of the World, N.R.Is etc.

By - Vipin K. Bansal
<><><><><> 5/7/2013

Table of Contents
Acknowledgement .................................................................................................................................... 2 Preface......................................................................................................................................................... 3 Culture of India ............................................................................................................................................. 4 Forests in India .............................................................................................................................................. 4 Countrywise population of NRIs ................................................................................................................ 5 Indian Cuisine ................................................................................................................................................ 7 Folk Dance and Music ................................................................................................................................... 8 Festivals of India ........................................................................................................................................... 8 Mela or Mahotsav ......................................................................................................................................... 9 Poets and Writers ....................................................................................................................................... 11 Selected Indian Authors and Books ............................................................................................................ 15 Flags of the countries .................................................................................................................................. 16 Questions Related to this Chapter ....................................................................................................... 23 Scoring System ......................................................................................................................................... 25 Bibliography: ........................................................................................................................................... 26 Thank You! .............................................................................................................................................. 26

Acknowledgement

When a book like this comes into existence, it is very hard to name and thank all the people that helped me shape this book. It took me over 7 years to consolidate and format all the content in a manner that may benefit the readers. However, I would like to start by

thanking my wife Suman Bansal for her patience and the time I stole from her. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my father Shri B. D. Bansal for his encouragement, invaluable experience and support.

I would like to thank my elder son Anurag Bansal who helped me design it and offer it on various online portals. My younger son Gaurav Bansal helped me put together all the questions related to the content.

Preface

As I mentioned in the previous parts that the idea of this book came to my mind after reviewing so many competitive examinations in examination halls or through Media and many people drop out without any success. I think most of the time the reason was either not enough preparation or lack of resources to enhance the knowledge required to compete with others.

Thats why I started writing this book on various subjects so that it can offer the basic guidance to the people preparing for the competition. Nonetheless everyone can get benefitted with this set of books because Ignorance is the curse of God, Knowledge is the wing wherewith we fly to heaven.

The Key to Success has been written for the people trying to prepare for any competition. Therefore the scope of this book is not to deep dive on any subject rather swim across various layers but what one need to qualify. However, this book cannot be used to gain exhaustive knowledge on any given subject but it provides enough information that you can easily remember and be better prepared for anything.

As usual, at the end of the book, a multi-choice Questionnaire is given that has only one correct answer. Try to attempt those questions on your own and then check the correct answers from the Answer Sheet.

Good Luck !!!

Culture of India

he culture of India refers to Art, Customs, Dance, Food, Music and Tradition. India is the birth place of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. There are more than 1650 languages spoken in India, out of which 30 languages are spoken by more than one million persons and 120 languages spoken by more than 10000 persons. 22 languages are official languages of India. o Hindi is spoken by more than 400 millions people. The other major languages are Bengali by 83 millions, Telugu, Tamil and Marathi by 70 millions and Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya, Punjabi and Urdu by about 50 million persons individually. Popular styles of dresses for women are Sari whereas Dhoti Kurta for men. Indian women wear up Bindi, mehendi, bangles and other jewelry items. Bindi and Sindoor are the traditional mark of a married woman for Hindus.

Eight classical forms of Dances of India are Bharatanatyam from Tamil Nadu, Kathak from Uttar Pradesh, Mohiniattam and Kathkali from Kerala, Kuchipudi from Andhra Pradesh, Yakshagana from Karnataka, Manipuri from Manipur, Odissi from Orissa and Sattriya from Assam. Indian Standard Time (IST) is the time observed throughout India and Sri Lanka with a time offset of UTC+05:30. India does not observe Daylight Saving Time. o Indian Standard Time is calculated on the basis of 82.5E longitude from a clock tower situated in Mirzapur near Allahabad. The Country's East and West distance of more than 2900 km covers over 28 degrees of Longitude resulting two hours difference in Sun rising and setting. Yoga and Chess were originated in India. Cricket was also introduced to India by the British people.

Forests in India
Name of State Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pr. Total Area 275000 84000 Forest (sq.km.) 47000 69000 Percent age 17 82 Asom Bihar Chhatisgarh Goa Gujarat 78000 94000 136000 3700 196000 24000 27000 56000 1200 12000 30 28 41 32 6

Haryana Himachal Pr. Jammu & K. Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Lakshdeep Madhya Pr. Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Odisha Puducherry Punjab

44000 56000 222000 80000 192000 39000 32 308000 308000 22000 22000 21000 16000 156000 500 50000

16000 21000 20000 24000 32000 10000 3 135000 44000 18000 16000 18000 14000 47000 45 3000

32 38 9 30 17 25 10 44 14 82 73 86 88 30 10 6

Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttrakhand West Bengal Andaman & N. Chandigarh Dadra & Nagar H. Daman & Diu Delhi

342000 7000 130000 10000 241000 52000 89000 8000 114 500 112 1500

13000 5700 18000 6000 34000 25000 12000 7000 7 200 6 30

11 82 14 60 14 25 14 86 7 40 5 5

Countrywise population of NRIs

on Resident Indian is a citizen of India who has a valid Indian passport and has migrated to another country for more than six months or so either for work or for residence. A person of Indian origin (PIO) is a person who was or whose ancestors were born in India but is not a citizen of India. About 25 million NRIs are based in different parts of the countries. 9th January is celebrated as Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in India. As per a survey report, in African countries alone, about 3 million NRIs are settled mainly at South Africa, Mauritius and West Indies. About 10 million NRIs at based in Asian countries like Nepal, Myanmar, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Maldives etc.

In Middle East countries more than 5 million NRIs are located mainly in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and Qatar. o NRIs in the Middle East are mostly from Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Bihar. The country does not provide citizenship or permanent residency but can live for a longer period. In European countries like England, Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, London, Portugal etc., about 2 million persons are enjoying their life. Trinidad and Tobago is the country where most of the persons from Eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have been migrated.

 United States of America and Canada are two countries where 80% of Indian persons out of more than 5 million NRIs are settled for a long time. Guyana and Suriname, South American countries have about 5 lac NRIs.

More than one million persons have reached in Australia, New Zealand and Fiji alone. A consolidated chart below shows the range of number of persons of NRIs in each country.

Population Range Range up to 2000

Argentina Mexico Afghanistan Egypt St. Vincent Bangladesh Greece Lebanon Austria Italy Mozambique Switzerland Bhutan Israel Nigeria Tanzania Fiji Thailand Australia Kuwait Qatar Canada Sri Lanka 25 millions

Name of the Countries Brazil Cambodia Poland Turkmenistan Barbados Finland Sudan Brunei Iraq Malawi Belgium Japan Panama Uganda Germany Jamaica Philippines Congo D.Rep. Iran Taiwan Denmark Jordan Norway China Rep. Libya Russian Fed. Zambia Hong Kong Kenya Portugal

Kazakhstan

Range <2000-5000

Cyprus Krygystan Ukraine Ghana Korea Seychelles Ireland Madagascar Sweden Zimbabwe Indonesia Maldives Spain

<5000-10000

<10000 - 25000

<25000 1 lac

< 1 lac 3 lac

Guyana Yemen Bahrain Mauritius Singapore Malaysia U.A.E.

New Zealand Netherland France Nepal Trinidad Saudi Arabia U.K.

Suriname

< 3 lac 5 lac < 5 lac 10 lac

Myanmar Oman

Above 10 lac Total NRIs

South Africa U.S.A.

Indian Cuisine

otato and Chilli were brought to India by the Portuguese.

o o o o o o o

Every State of India has some specific varieties of food, sweets and drinks which are very popular in India and Abroad also. Like Mysore Pak, it was first prepared in the Mysore Palace and was served to the royal family, hence this sweet dish is popularly known as Mysore Pak. Bisi bele bath is a favourite name of Pulao in Karnataka. o Rajasthans Daal Baati, Tarfini and Ghujia (also known as Karanji in Maharashtra, Ghughra in Gujarat, Karachika in Tamil Nadu) and Ghevar; o Goas Vindaloo; o Puran Poli or Holige of Maharashtra; o Odishas Pakhaa Dessert which is also popular in West Bengal (as Panta Bhat), Assam, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh; o Keralas Aviyal Soup; o Andhra Pradeshs Baghara baingan, Hyderabadi Sheer Korma, kheema; o Assams Poitabhat; o Bihars Saalan, Chokha; o Jharkhands Thekua sweet dish; o Chattisgarhs Red ant chutney;

o o

Kashmirs Rogan Josh, Wazwan; Gujarats Dhokla, Khaman, Khakra, Khandvi, Fafda; Madhya Pradeshs Daal Bafla; Manipurs Umarok known as Jolokia or Ghost Chilli; Meghalayas Momo; Mizorams Bai and Sawchair; Punjab de Makke di Roti and Sarson da Saag, Tandoori Chicken, Dal makhani, choley Kulcha; Tamil Nadus Dosa and idli; Uttar Pradeshs Kebabs, Dum Biryani, Sheer Qorma, Ghewar; Uttarakhands Chudkani, Dubuk, Moong dal Mungodi, Urad Dal Badi was originated from here; West Bengals Luchi, a substitute of bread or roti and Shondesh, a popular sweet dish are very popular dishes of the States. 19th century, Indian dishes popularized like Manchurian, Chicken Chilli chicken, Hakka Manchow soup, sweet

During Chinese Chicken lollipop, noodles, corn etc.

Jalebi is a famous sweet item popular in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Middle East countries, Africa etc.

Folk Dance and Music

State Assam Gujarat Maharashtra Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Jharkhand Chhatisgarh Goa Himachal Pradesh Haryana Karnataka Kashmir Lakshdeep Madhya Pradesh Dance and Music Form Bihu Dandiya Garba Lavini Kollattam Bardo Chham Karma Munda Panthi Tarangmel Saang Dhamal Yakshgana Dumhal Lava Tertali Jawara Matki Maanch Chaakri Jhanjhar Ghoomar Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura West Bengal Raut Nacha Jhoomar Garba Paavri Kuchipudi Uttar Pradesh Manipur Mizoram Nagaland Odisha Puducherry Punjab Rajasthan Charkula Thang Ta Cheraw Chang Lo/Sua Lua Ghumra Garadi Bhangra Kalbelia Panihari Singhi Chham Kamandi Devarattam Hojagiri Gambhira Kalikapatadi Giddha Teratali Phoodi Zeliang Chhau/Ruk mar Kajri & Karan

Kolattam Mayilattam

Festivals of India

ndependence Day, Republic Day and Gandhi Jayanti are National Holidays.

Buddha Purnima, Good Friday, Easter, Mahavir Jayanti, Ravidas Jayanti, Vaisakhi etc. are major festivals of India. Secular holidays are celebrated in most part of India as 1st January as New Year's Day, 23rd January as Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Birthday in Orissa, Tripura, West Bengal;

Holi, Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi, Dussehra, Id-ul-Fitr, Moharram, Guru Nanak Birthday, Christmas Day, Gudhi Padva, Vasant Panchami, Maha Shivaratri, Naag Panchami, Rath Yatra, Ram Navami, Hanuman Jayanti, Raksha Bandhan, Janmashtami, Onam, Hartalika Teej, Chhath,

o o

19th February as Maharaja Shivaji Birthday in Maharashtra; 15th March as Kanshi Ram's Birthday in Uttar Pradesh; 14th April as B.R. Ambedkar's Birthday in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chandigarh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Maharashtra, Puducherry, Odisha, Uttrakhand, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal;

31st October as Sardar Patel Jayanti in Gujarat.

The countries where large Indian population resides, they celebrate these festivals with great joy and entertainment. Holi is celebrated in Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Malaysia, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, United Kingdom, United States of America, Mauritius, Fiji etc. Similarly, Diwali, Durga Puja, Shivratri, Vaisakhi are also celebrated abroad.

Mela or Mahotsav

umbh Mela is a Hindu pilgrimage of faith held for about 40 day duration. o

It is one of the largest festivals in the world with about 10 crores of people gathering. It is held every third year at Haridwar, Allahabad, Nashik and Ujjain by rotation i.e. Kumbh Mela is held at each of these four places every twelfth year. o Ardh Kumbh is held at Haridwar and Allahabad at every sixth year. Purna Kumbh Mela is held at Prayag every 12 years and Maha Kumbh Mela is held at Prayag on every 144 years. o The sacred rivers of these places are Ganges at

Haridwar, Sangam at Allahabad, Godavari at Nashik and Shipra at Ujjain. The next Kumbh Mela will be held at Nashik from 15th August to 13th September, 2015.

Taj Mahotsav is a 10 days annual event from 18th to 27th February at Shilpgram Agra. Craftsmen from different parts of India come and display their art work including Stone Carving, Silk and Handicrafts, Bamboo, Marble, Brass, Zardozi work etc. from South India, North East India, Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal etc. o Throughout the Mahotsav, various types of folk and classical music and dances

are performed by artists from various regions. Foreign visitors have free entry in Taj Mahotsav whereas for others the Entry ticket is charged. However children below 10 are free. Lucknow Mahotsav is also a 10 days Annual event organized between 25th November and 5th December at Lucknow. Craftsmen from all over the country bring their products to the festival. o Colorful processions, dramas and dances are held in Lucknow style. Sarangi and sitar recitals, ghazals, qawalis and thumri produce a cheerful atmosphere during the festival. o Other villageous attractions like Ekka race, Kite flying, Cock fighting etc. are celebrated during this event. Gwalior Trade Fair is a large trade fair of Gwalior. It was started by Maharaja Scindia of Gwalior sometime 100 years back as a Cattle Fair. o About 5000 shops provide ready to use structures for show room and exhibitions. It has an independent power sub-station, water system, hospital, police station, banks etc. About 5 million visitors witness the fair. o Reputed Indian and Multi National companies, Public sector Enterprises, State Governments, Institutes and

other businessmen participate in the fair. The revenue generated in the fair roughly estimates Rs. 5 billions. The other major attractions are Kavi Sammelan, Mushairas, Music events etc.

Nagaur Ramdeo Cattle Fair is one of the largest cattle fair in Rajasthan which was founded by King Umed Singh of Jodhpur. It is held during the month of January and February each year. o The fair is a big market of farm products but the Mirchi market is the most thrilling and over crowded. Folk songs and dances are held during the festival. Chhath is an ancient Hindu festival dedicated to Sun God, Surya. The Chhath Puja is performed in order to thank Surya for sustaining life on earth. Sun worship cures from diseases. o It is a 4-day festival and is observed mostly in Bihar, Jharkhand, Eastern Uttar Pradesh etc. Nauchandi mela is held in Meerut. It has thousands of stalls which are visited by millions of people during one months period. o Mandodari was born in Meerut. She was a great devotee of goddess Chandi and she had a temple erected in her honour. A

religious festival was held to celebrate this occasion and since then the fair has been held every year. It is a rare symbol of communal harmony with Hindu and Muslim shrines

Nauchandi temple and Dargah of Bala Mian, a muslim saint. Every evening some cultural programmes are additional attraction of the mela.

Poets and Writers

Meerabai was devotee of Lord Krishna. She was a significant figure of Vaishnava bhakti movement. Meera was a Rajput princess from Merta City, Pali district of Rajasthan. o During her childhood, she became deeply enamored by Lord Krishna. Meera was taken care of by her grandfather and got education there. o Her uncle, Rao Viram Dev arranged Meeras marriage with prince Bhoj Raj, son of Rana Sanga of Chittor. She was not happy with her marriage as she considered herself already married to Lord Krishna. o She went to live in Chittor and prayed Lord Krishna there. Her husband was died in a battle. Rana Sanga protected Meera Bai but after his death, her other inlaws tried to harass Meera to give up her worship towards Lord Krishna. o Meera was a disciple of the guru Raidas. She spent her last period at Dwarka, Gujarat. It is said that Mirabai disappeared into the Dwarkadhish Murti. She versed her poems in Padavali in Rajasthani and Braj language.

Munshi Premchand was born on 31st July, 1880. He died on 8th October, 1936. He was a famous Indian writer. He was born as Dhanpat Rai. o He has written more than 1 dozen Novels, 250 Short Stories, Essays and translations of foreign literary works into Hindi. He worked as a teacher at the Govt. School Bahraich. o The Mystery of God's Abode was his first writing which explores corruption among the temple priests and their sexual exploitation of poor women. It was published in Benares-based Urdu weekly Awaz-e-Khalk. o He established a Printing press and publishing house

in Benares, named as Saraswati Press. Kishna- women's fondness for jewellery, Rangbhoomi, Gaban, Godaan, Mangal Sutra, Bade Bhai Sahab, Beti ka Dhan, Panch Parameshvar, Boodhi Kaki, Pariksha - Sujan Singh to search for a new minister, Shatranj ki bazi, Idgah Eid and buys tongs for his grandmother, Kafan, Namak Ka Daroga, Lottery - bought a lottery ticket are his famous stories.

Bijak, Sakhi Granth, Kabir Granthavali and Anurag Sagar are Kabirs favourite granths. His poems are in Hindi, Avadhi, Braj and Bhojpuri languages. Kabir's legacy is today carried forward by the Kabir Panth, a religious community.

Amir Khusrow, real name Abdul Hasan Yaminuddin Khusrow was a musician and poet. He is regarded as Father of Qawali. o Jalaluddin Khilji, Alauddin Khilji, Qutbuddin and Muhammad bin Tughluq were the kings with whom Khusrow was attached during their reign. He wrote in Persian and Hindustani. Ghalib born Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan on 27 December 1797 died 15 February 1869 was a classical Urdu and Persian poet from the Mughal Empire during British colonial rule. He used his pennames of Ghalib. Mirza Ghalib was born in Agra. Kabir was a poet and sant of India. He was takencare by Muslim weavers Niru and Nima in Varanasi. He did not believe in worshipping of murtis.

Surdas was a poet and musician. His poems are dedicated to Lord Krishna. He was blind. Surdas composed in Sur Sagar. His guru was Shri Vallabharacharya who taught him Hindu philosophy and meditation and lived with him in Vrindavan. Kaka Hathrasi was born on 18th Sept., 1906. His real name was Prabhu Dayal Garg. He established Sangeet Karyalaya, a Publishing company in 1932. He was awarded Padma Shri in 1985. o He participated in Radio programme, Meethi Meethi Hasaiyan. "Kaka Hathrasi Puraskar" is given annually to the best humor Poet. He died on 18th September, 1995. Raskhan was born in 1548. His real name was Sayeed Ibrahim. He was a poet and was follower of Lord Krishna. His guru was Goswami Vitthal Nath and spend whole life in Vrindavan. o He translated Bhagavata into Persian. His shrine is

located in Gokul. Prem Vatica and Sujan Raskhan are his creations. Rachnavali is the collection of his poetry. Abul Fazal wrote Akbarnama and Aina-e-Akbari is Persian translation of Bible. Miyan Tansen was a singer of King Akbar. His real name was Tanna Mishra. Birbal, real name Mahesh Das, was a poor Brahmin but was very brilliant so he was appointed in Akbars court. Even his main duty was Military and administrative but was very close friend of King Akbar. He was also a poet. He died in a battle due to unrest amongst Afghani tribes in Northwest India. Raja Todar Mal was a Hindu Khatri and was Finance Minister of king Akbar. He introduced standard Weights and Measurements. o Raja Man Singh was of Jaipur Dynasty and was a General in Akbars Army. He was Mughal Viceroy of Afghanistan, Bihar, Orissa, Deccan and Bengal. o Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana was a poet and was step son of Akbar. Baiju Bawra real name was Baij Nath Mishra. He was the court musician of Raja Mansingh Tomar of Gwalior along with Tansen and others. Baiju learnt Dhrupad music by Guru Hari Das Goswami in Vrindavan.

Tulsidas was a Hindu poet, saint and devotee to Lord Rama. He was born to Hulsi and Atmaram Dubey at Chitrakoot. His nickname was Rambola. Tulsidas was married to Ratnavali. Tulsidas lived permanently in Varanasi. o Ram Charit Manas was completed by Tulsidas in 2 years 7 months and 26 days in the year 1575 CE at Ayodhya. After completing it, Tulsidas came to Varanasi and recited Ram Charit Manas to Lord Shiva and Parvati at Kashi Vishwanath Temple. o Vinay Patrika is last composition of Tulsidas. Tulsidas died at the Assi Ghat on the bank of Ganga river. o Tulsidas Awadhi works included Ram Charit Manas whereas in Brajbhasha he wrote Krishna Gitavali, Dohavali, Vinaya Patrika. Tulsidas also composed Hanuman Chalisa, Hanuman Ashtak and Tulsi Satsai in Avadhi. Sumitranandan Pant was a poet. Real name was Gosain Dutt. He received Jnanpith Award in 1968 for first Hindi poet. He was also awarded Sahitya Kala Academy award and honored with Padma Vibhushan Award. Bihari full name was Bihari Lal Chaube was a Hindi poet. His

famous writing is Satsai in Brajbhasha. He was born in Gwalior in 1595 and spent his boyhood in Orchha. o He got an opportunity to meet Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, who immediately got impressed by his work and invited him to stay in Agra. o He learnt Persian language and came into contact with Rahim. Raja Jai Singh I of Jaipur also invited him over to Jaipur where he composed Satasai. Mahadevi Varma was a writer, Poet, Freedom Fighter, Woman's Activist. She was Principal and Vice Chancellor of Prayag Mahila Vidyapeeth. She was awarded Sahitya Akademi Fellowship in 1979, Jnanpith Award in 1982 and Padma Vibhushan in 1988. Rahim Khan, real name Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana was one of Navaratnas of King Akbar. He was son of Bairam Khan. After death of Bairam Khan, his wife became the second wife of Akbar which made Abdul Rahim Khan-e-Khan his stepson. o Rahim was a devotee of Lord Krishna and wrote poetry dedicated to him. He was also an astrologer. Rahim translated Babar's memoirs, Baburnama. Maithili Sharan Gupt was a modern Hindi poet. He composed in Khari Boli. He was an honorary

member of Rajya Sabha where he used poetry to put his opinions before the other members. He remained a member of the Rajya Sabha till his death. o His poetry names were Rang mein Bhang, BharatBharati, Jayadrath Vadh, Plassey ka Yuddha, Gurukul, Panchavati, Yashodhara, Arjan Aur Visarjan, Kaaba-Karbala, Jayabharat, Dwapar, kirano ka khel etc. Ramdhari Singh 'Dinkar' was a poet, essayist and patriot. He was elected three times to the Rajya Sabha. He was awarded Padma Bhushan award in 1959. He was also the Vice Chancellor of Bhagalpur University in 1960s. He got the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1959 for his work Sanskriti ke Char Adhyay. Dinkar was awarded the Jnanpith Award in 1972 for Urvashi. o Poetic work were Vijay Sandesh, Kurukshetra, Itihas ke Aansoo, Dhup aur Dhuan, Mirch ka Mazaa, Dilli, Neem ke Patte, Suraj ka Byaah, Seepee aur Shankh. Major Prose works were Ardhanaarishwar, Reti ki Phool, Sanskriti ke Chaar Adhyaay, He Ram!, Meri Yatrayen, Vivah ki Musibaten. Kavi Pradeep was born in 1915. His real name was Ramchandra Baryanji Dwivedi. He was a

renowned poet and song writer for his patriotic song Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo which was later filmized in Kangan. o He wrote about 1700 songs and nationalistic poems including the lyrics for more than 70 films. Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo song was famously performed live by Lata Mangeshkar in the presence of Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru at the Ramlila grounds, New Delhi on 26th January, 1963. o Despite many offers, Kavi Pradeep pledged the royalty of this song to 'War Widows Fund'. He died in the year

1998. On 25th August, 2005, Mumbai High Court ordered Saregama (HMV) to pay Rs. 1 million as arrears as Royalty to the War Widows Fund. Valmiki, real name was Ratnakar, was the author of Ramayana. Narada Muni changed his life when he was passing by the jungle and Ratnakar tried to harass him. He was called Valmiki because he had done his penancy on an ant-hill (Sanskrit word). o Ramayan was written originally by Valmiki in Sanskrit which consist 24,000 shloks in 7 Cantos.

Selected Indian Authors and Books

Author A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Ravindra Nath Tagore Mahatma Gandhi Jawahar Lal Nehru Atal Behari Bajpayee Dr. S. Radhakrishnan T.N. Seshan M. Hidayatullah Jaswant Singh V.V. Giri R. Venkatraman Bimal Jalan L.K. Advani Indira Gandhi Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Khushwant Singh Name of the Book (s) Wings of Fire Ignited Minds Crescent Moon Post Office Geetanjali Hungry Stone My Experiments with Truth Conquest of Self Discovery of India Glimpses of World History New Dimensions of Indias Foreign Policy Indian Philosophy An Ideal View of Life The Degeneration of India My Own Boswell A Call to Honour My Life and Times Jobs for Millions My Presidential Years The Future of India A Prisoners Scrap Book Eternal India If I am assassinated Train to Pakistan The Company of Women

P.V. Narsimha Rao Neelam S. Reddy Jai Prakash Narayan

A Long Way Without Fear or Favour Prison Diary

Flags of the countries

he flag is a symbol of any Country. Each country has a specific Flag which is flown on a pole to identify that country.
The shape of most of the flags

flags and Blue for European flags.

American RED Asian YELLOW African BLACK Australian GREEN European BLUE

usually rectangular but may be of Square or Triangular shapes also.

There is a protocol involved in

There are 193 countries recognized

proper display of flags. It should never be flown upside down and should be flown in a position of honor and not in an inferior position of other flags. When a National Flag is displayed together with any other countrys flag, it must be hoisted first and lowered last and should be of equal size and must be flown at equal height.

as Member States of United Nations, 8 countries Non-united Nation Members, 38 Inhabited Dependent Territories and 6 Nations are recognized by International Agreement i.e. a total 245 countries have their own Flags.
While the flag of Denmark is the

If a Flag of any shape or

any color is waved vigorously on a Railway track, it means STOP.

Mostly flags are made of three

oldest flag, the flag of Netherlands is the oldest Tri-color flag. Union Flag of United Kingdom is the most commonly flag and also being used by Australia, Fiji, New Zealand and Tuvalu.
Nepals

strips. The flag of each Nation has minimum one particular color which shows its Continent such as Red for American flags, Yellow or Saffron for Asian flags, Black for African flags, Green for Australian

Flag is the only nonquadrilateral flag in the World. The flag of Switzerland and Vatican City are the only National flags which are in Square shapes. The Flag of South Africa has Six colors whereas Seychelles flag has 5 colors.

 Flag of Marshall Islands represents

the Pacific Ocean in Blue color whereas white orange bands represent the Ratak Ralik

(Sunrise and Sunset) chains. A consolidated sheet of the flags arranged in order of its shape or color is given below.

FLAGS SAME AS INDIAN FLAG

INDIA

NIGER

TAJIKAN

HUNGARY

IRAN

IRELAND

ITALY

FLAGS WITH RED AND WHITE TWO COLOR

BAHRAIN

CANADA

GREENLAND

DENMARK

MALTA

HONG KONG

INDONESIA

FLAGS WITH RED (MEROON) AND WHITE TWO COLOR

LEBANON

MONACO

TONGA

PERU

POLAND

LATVIA

AUSTRIA

FLAGS HAVING MOON AND STAR(S)

SINGAPORE

TURKEY

TUNISIA

MAURITANIA

PAKISTAN

ALGERIA

AZERBAIJAN

COMOROS

CHILE

UZBEKISTAN

MALDIVES

LIBYA

MALAYSIA

TUKMTAN

FLAGS HAVING SUN PICTURE

ANTIGUA & B.

KIRIBATI

ARGENTINA

KAZSTAN

URUGUAY

RWANDA

NAURU

FLAGS WITH UNION JACK SIGN

AUSTRALIA

FIJI

N.ZEALAND

UNITED K.

TUVULU

BERMUDA

FLAGS WITH MULTI STARS (Decreasing Order)

U.S.A.

BOSNIA & H.

CAPE VERDE

VENEZUELA

KOSOVO

SOLOMON ISL.

CHINA

PAPUA NEW G.

SAMOA

QATAR

FLAGS WITH MULTIPLE COLORS

CEN. AFRICAN R.

SEYCHELLES

SOUTH AFRICA

FLAGS HAVING CIRCLE

BANGLADESH

JAPAN

LAOS

PALAU

FLAGS HAVING BIRDS

ALBANIA

DOMINICA

EQUADOR

MALDOVA

VIRGIN ISLAND

ZAMBIA

MONTENEGRO

FLAGS WITH CHRISTIANITY SIGN

FINLAND

ICELAND

NORWAY

SWEDEN

FAROE ISL.

FLAGS WITH SINGLE COLOR SURFACE

VIETNAM

MICRONESIA

HONG KONG

GUAM

SOMALIA

MOROCCO

KRYGHSTAN

FLAGS WITH CROSS-SECTION

JAMAICA

BURUNDI

GEORGIA

SWITZERLAND

DOMINICA R.

PANAMA

FLAGS WITH DIAGONAL STRIPS

CONGO DEM.REP.

CONGO

MARSHALL IS.

NAMIBIA

ST. KITTS

TANZANIA

TRINIDAD & T.

FLAGS WITH MULTIPLE VERTICAL STRIPS

COSTA RICA

MAURITIUS

THAILAND

GREECE

UGANDA

SWAZILAND

FLAGS WITH MULTIPLE VERTICAL STRIPS AND STAR

LIBERIA

SURINAME

TOGO

ZIMBABWE

FLAGS WITH SOME OBJECTS ON IT

BRAZIL

CAMBODIA

BRUNEI

BELIZE

AFGHANISTAN

ST. LUCIA

MONGOLIA

FLAGS WITH UNIQUE DESIGN AND SHAPE

BHUTAN

CYPRUS - MAP

IRAQ ALLAHU AKBAR

NEPAL

S.ARABIA - SHAHADA

SRI LANKA

MACEDONIA

FLAGS WITH MULTI COLOR DIAGONAL SHAPE

KUWAIT

BAHAMAS

JORDAN

MOZAMBIQUE

SUDAN

EQUI. GUINEA

FLAGS WITH 3-HORIZONTAL FLAT STRIPS

CHAD

COTE DLVOIRE

FRANCE

GUINEA

MALI

NIGERIA

ROMANIA

BELGIUM

CAMERON

SENEGAL

MEXICO

SQUARE FLAGS

VATICAN CITY

UKRAINE

FLAGS WITH BLUE SHADED EXTREMELY

BOTSWANA

ELSALVADOR

HONDURUS GUATEMALA NICARAGUA SAN MARINO

FLAGS WITH TWO COLOR AND TRIANGLE BASE

DJIBOUTI

CZECH. REP.

CUBA

PHILIPPINES

SAO TOME

VANUATU

FLAGS WITH THREE VERTICAL FLAT STRIPS

ARMENIA

BULGARIA

GAMBIA

COLUMBIA

LITHUANIA

LUXEMBOURG

NETHERLANDS

GABON

ESTONIA

SIERRE LEONE

RUSSIA

YEMEN

GERMANY

FLAGS WITH THREE VERTICAL STRIPS WITH SOME OBJECT

CROATIA

ETHIOPIA

GHANA

SLOVENIA

LESOTHO

MALAWI

N. KOREA

MYANMAR

BOLIVIA

EGYPT

PARAGUA

SERBIA

SYRIA

SPAIN

BARBADOS

ANDORRA

ST. VINCENT

ISRAEL

S. KOREA

FLAGS HAVING SOME KINDS OF WEAPON TYPE

ARROW ANGOLA KENYA OMAN

GUYANA

FLAGS WITH BLOCK TYPE DESIGN

BENIN

GRENEDA

GUINEA BISSUE

MADAGASCAR

U.A.E.

FLAGS WITH RED COLOR AND ONE MORE COLOR

BELARUS

BURKINO FASO

HAITI

LIECHTEIN

PORTUGAL

TAIWAN

TIMOR

Total : 201 Flags

Questions Related to this Chapter

1-G. Prem Vatika, poems on Lord Krishna is a collection of which Poet? (a) Behari (b) Surdas (c) Raskhan (d) Kabir 2-O. In which language, Surdas wrote Sursagar? (a) Khari Boli (b) Sanskrit (c) Brij Bhasha (d) Bhojpuri 3-L. Which Indian writer published a collection of short stories titled Mansarovar? (a) Pratap Narain Mishr (b) Prem Chand (c) Jai Shanker Prasad (d) Mahadevi Verma 4-A. How many countries are recognized as Member States of United Nations who have their own National Flags? (a) 191 (b) 193 (c) 201 (d) 238 5-D. of? (a) (b) (c) (d) Bisi Bele Bath is a popular dish a a a a kind kind kind kind of of of of Rice item beverage dessert snack item famous 8-A. Which book is not written by Mahatma Gandhi? (a) The Degeneration of India (b) Story of my Experiment with Truth (c) Hind Swaraj (d) Key to Health 9-L. Other than Hindi, which language is most frequently spoken in India? (a) Gujarati (b) Malayalam (c) Tamil (d) Urdu 10-E. which NRIs? (a) (c) Out of the following countries, country has maximum number of Thailand Bhutan (b) (d) Germany Myanmar

11-E. Which country flag is just like Indian flag with circle inside? (a) Ireland (b) Italy (c) Niger (d) Hungary 12-D. Which book is not written by any President of India? (a) Ignited Minds (b) An Idealist View of Line (c) My Life and Times (d) New Dimensions of Indias Foreign Policy 13-A. Divas (a) (c) On which day, Pravasi Bharti is celebrated in India? 4th May (b) 9th January th 11 Sept. (d) 27th September

6-N. At which Court, did Persian Poet Amir Khusro live? (a) Il-tut-mish (b) Akbar (c) Mohd. Tughlaq (d) Allauddin Khilzi

7-E. Which book is not written by Ravindra Nath Tagore? (a) Gardener (b) The Future of India (c) Hungary Stones (d) The Court Dancer

14-G. What is Noon-chai in Kashmirs tradition? (a) Salty beverage (b) Drink having in afternoon (c) Sweet dish (d) Non-vegetarian dish name 15-N. At what time is Raga Bhairvi suitable for playing? (a) Morning (b) Afternoon (c) Evening (d) Night

16-A. equal (a) (c)

Which countrys time zone is as as of Indian timings? Bangladesh (b) Pakistan Sri Lanka (d) Nepal

(a) (c)

Iraq Iran

(b) (d)

Saudi Arabia Egypt

17-B. Which tree is considered to be the most beneficial medically? (a) Guava (b) Basil (c) Banana (d) Neem 18-G. Which Mughal Emperor donated the land for construction of Golden Temple at Amritsar? (a) Akbar (b) Humaun (c) Jehangir (d) Shah Jehan 19-D. Which country has the maximum NRI persons from Bihar who have settled there? (a) United Kingdom (b) Trinidad & Tobago (c) United States of America (d) Dubai 20-L. From which States Dal Mungodi (Badi) was food item? (a) Bihar (b) (c) Uttrakhand (d) of India, Moong originated as a Rajasthan Haryana-Pb.

25-L. Which country first used the 365days calendar? (a) Indian (b) Greeks (c) Chinese (d) Egyptians 26-L. Which Dynasty is the oldest one in Indian History? (a) Bahmani Dynasty (b) Chola Dynasty (c) Lodi Dynasty (d) Satvahana Dynasty 27-E. In how many years, the Oxford English Dictionary was conceived in 1858? (a) 10 years (b) 25 years (c) 50 years (d) 70 years 28-L. Out of the following, which collection of poems is not of Maithli Sharan Gupt? (a) Plassey ka Yuddh (b) Kaaba Karbala (c) Jaydrath Vadh (d) Sanskrit ke Chaar Adhyaay 29-G. Who wrote the poem Twinkle Little Star? (a) Ann Taylor (b) Jane Taylor (c) Ann & Jane Taylor both (d) Emily Dickinson Twinkle

21-D. To whom it is believed, was born and died on the same date? (a) Meerabai (b) Ras Khan (c) Tulsidas (d) Kaka Hathrasi 22-E. Of whom, surname was Chaube? (a) Tulsidas (b) Bihari (c) Kavi Pradeep (d) Birbal 23-E. In which country, maximum American are residing or posted for any reasons? (a) Brazil (b) Mexico (c) Israel (d) Canada 24-A. In which country flag, a Shahada is written inside the flag?

30-L. Which Dance form is originated from Karnataka State of India? (a) Kuchipudi (b) Bharatnatyam (c) Kathkali (d) Yakshgana 31-G. Which is the best selling book all over the world? (a) Ramayan (b) Geeta (c) Bible (d) Quraan

Scoring System
The questions are divided into ten slabs of rating, as usual which has a numeral value. These letters are A, B, D, E, G, H, L, N, O and S.

Q. Ans. 1c 6d 11 c 16 c 21 d 26 d 31 - c

Q. Ans. 2c 7b 12 d 17 d 22 b 27 d

Q. Ans. 3b 8a 13 b 18 a 23 b 28 d

Q. Ans. 4b 9c 14 a 19 b 24 b 29 c

Q. Ans. 5-a 10 - d 15 - a 20 c 25 - d 30 d

Bibliography:
When I compiled this chapter, I took help of some websites related to it. The following quotes and references were visited http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_India http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-resident_Indian_and_person_of_Indian_origin http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Sovereign-state_flags Manorama Guide upto 2012.

Thank You!
18 part of the Book of The Key to Success
th

Indian Culture, Flags of the World, NRIs etc.

has been released. Hope you are enjoying. Now in this part of book you will find knowledge regarding Culture of India, its forests, Folk Dances, Festivals and Melas, Cuisines, Poets and Writers,Authors and their Books, N.R.Is. in different countries and Flags of the World etc. I tried to give you as much information as possible regarding the above subject even knowing that there is too much to write on the subject matter. Again I request you all to share it with your friends too. Very soon you may buy the book in parts at a discounted rate from various online services including Amazon.com separately.