Date:08/05/2004 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2004/05/08/stories/2004050809980300.htm

Andhra Pradesh - Others

Questions with a corporate fizz

By M. Dinesh Varma

N. Ram, Editor-in-Chief, The Hindu group of publications (centre), flanked by Kesari Prasad and Ramkumar, representing Chemplast Sanmar Ltd, who won the finals of the Ad Club Business Line quiz held in Chennai on Friday. Seated are the runners-up Mitesh Agarwal (left) and Ajay Kasargod, from Cypher. — Photo: Bijoy Ghosh

CHENNAI, MAY 7. Who is the biggest advertiser in the Tiananmen Square? Well, the place is out of bounds for the expansionist corporate bigwigs because of a ban on advertising.

Which automobile major's headquarters is referred to as the "Four-Cylindered Tower", why should the locale of the film, "Interpreter" be unique, or which sundowner comes in a bottle with an emblem of a winged bat?

Questions with a corporate fizz flew thick and fast at the 10th edition of the `Ad Club-The Hindu-Businessline Quiz', and the participants were nearly always right. There were six finalists from the regional contests held in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Chennai.

And at the end of an intense two-hour quizzing session, the team from the Chemplast Sanmar emerged winners in the battle of wits.

It was a three-way tie for the second spot, and a two-way tie for the third. The team from Cypher was runners-up, and the I-flex team booked the third spot.

The other teams were Bhilai Steel Plant, TCS-Fact and Vanish Inc.

Quizmaster Suresh Kumar, a marketing professional, raised the bar in choosing the right mix of the tough, tricky and trivia. But, the finalists gave a fitting response.

Audience participation was so animated that the quizmaster had to hush the audience during the tie to smother prompts.

There were a few interactive rounds with the audience too, which had offstage eager quizzers on their feet. Many walked off with handsome prizes from the sponsors.

According to the format of the quiz, each team was represented by two members. Based on their performance in the qualifying rounds, the top six made it to the grand finale.

Over three weeks, the event featured 150 teams across the three cities, and 300 questions.

The Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu, N. Ram, gave away the prize to the top team.

The other prizes were given away by R. Visvanathan, General Manager, Union Bank of India. The Joint Managing Director of The Hindu, N. Murali, and K. Venugopal, Executive Editor, Business Line, were also present.

The Union Bank of India was the title sponsor, while the national co-sponsors were Amco Yuasa Batteries, ITC Limited, Club Mahindra Holidays, Reynolds and Titan.

The hospitality sponsor was Savera Hotels Ltd; and academic partner, the Amity University. The regional sponsors of the event were Mahavir Optics, UniverCell, Vision Healthsource, Eagle Diaries and Dutian Imported Furniture.