SSC
The Soorya Festival, one of the longest-running cultural festivals in India, is held in which city?
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Answer: Option B — Thiruvananthapuram
Detailed Solution
The Soorya Festival is an annual cultural festival held in Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of Kerala. It begins every year on 1 October and continues for over a hundred days, featuring performances of classical music, dance, theatre and film, and is regarded as one of the longest-running cultural festivals in India.
The festival is organised by Soorya, a cultural organisation founded in 1977 by Soorya Krishnamoorthy, a well-known stage director and cultural organiser, together with other art lovers. The festival began on a small scale and grew into a major event in the cultural calendar of Kerala. It brings together leading artists from across India, as well as from other countries. Performances include Carnatic and Hindustani classical music, classical dances such as Bharatanatyam, Kathakali, Mohiniyattam, Kuchipudi, Odissi and Kathak, theatre, films and talks. The festival has hosted many of the greatest artists of India over the decades, and many young artists have performed there early in their careers. The main venue has been the Tagore Theatre in Thiruvananthapuram, and Soorya has also organised festivals in other cities in India and abroad.
Thiruvananthapuram has a rich cultural tradition, shaped by the patronage of the kings of Travancore, especially Maharaja Swathi Thirunal (1813-1846), a great composer and patron of music and dance. The city also hosts the Nishagandhi Dance Festival, held in January at the Kanakakkunnu Palace grounds, the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), held in December, and the Swathi Sangeethotsavam, a music festival in memory of Swathi Thirunal.
Kerala's other cities also have important cultural events, such as the Kochi-Muziris Biennale (contemporary art) in Kochi and the Thrissur Pooram in Thrissur.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Kochi hosts the Kochi-Muziris Biennale of contemporary art.
- ✗Kozhikode is known for its literature festival (Kerala Literature Festival).
- ✗Thrissur is known for the Thrissur Pooram.
Quick tip
Remember: The Soorya Festival = Thiruvananthapuram, its start on 1 October and its founder Soorya Krishnamoorthy (1977).
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Festivals & Fairs of India — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Festivals & Fairs of India, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the religious, harvest, tribal and cultural festivals of India, the fairs (melas) held across the country, and the states, communities and seasons linked to them. It also includes festivals listed by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage, such as Kumbh Mela and Durga Puja in Kolkata. Most questions ask which state celebrates a festival, which tribe it belongs to, or what event it marks. Harvest festivals are especially common: Pongal (Tamil Nadu), Onam (Kerala), Bihu (Assam), Lohri and Baisakhi (Punjab) and Nuakhai (Odisha). Fairs such as the Pushkar camel fair (Rajasthan) and the Sonepur cattle fair (Bihar) are also frequently tested. Revise festivals state by state. Practise the festivals and fairs questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.