Quizzing the way out of lockdown

KOCHI: Since 2017, the Cochin Quiz Club, a close-knit community of quizzing enthusiasts in the city has been meeting once a month for their Chai Pe Quiz sessions. The Covid-19 scare and subsequent lockdown meant that the sessions would have to stop, at least for a while.But the members were not ready to give up on their shared joy of quizzing, so they have now brought back a bigger and better online version of the same, named ‘Lockdown Pe Quiz’ series.

The April edition hosted on Instagram TV (IGTV) platform from April 1 - 15, featured topics that varied from cricket, food, arts, business, netflix , medical etymology and medical trivia, and saw participation of quizzers from across the country. They also roped in renowned quiz master Major Chandrakant Nair to host the final episode, which was attended by 1,100 participants from across the country. Jayakanth R, one of the top quizzers in the country, hosted their session on business. 

Quizzing Culture in Kochi
The club was founded in 2017 by Dr Unnikrishana Menon, Aravind Anil and Dr Nithish T Jacob. While it was work that brought them to the city, the trio of avid quizzers wanted to remedy the absence of an active quizzing circuit in an otherwise happening city. The sessions are open to all, irrespective of age, while a majority of their members are school students. The community has moulded many quizzing enthusiasts from the city.  “The perception that quizzing is an activity reserved for a niche or the studious needs to change,” says Aravind, convener and co-founder of the club. 

Contrary to the old notion that quiz is an exercise involving extreme memorisation, the newer formats have undergone a sea change in the previous years . “Earlier, rote learning and memorisation played a key role. Now, quizzes try to measure the exposure of a participant,” adds Aravind.