Bunkagame — July 18, 2026

Question 1

The 2017 film Hombanna won awards at Venezuela's Five Continents festival and was shown at the Miami Independent Film Festival. The 2006 thriller Thutturi took the Best Audience Award at the 9th Dhaka International Film Festival. Which South Indian film industry, based in Bengaluru, do they belong to?

Accepted Answer

Kannada cinema is sometimes called Sandalwood, after Karnataka's famous sandalwood forests, and makes about 200 films a year. The 2017 film Hombanna was shown at the Miami Independent Film Festival, and the 2006 thriller Thutturi took the Best Audience Award at the 9th Dhaka International Film Festival. Bigger hits like KGF and Kantara have recently drawn international attention.

Question 2

This early-1900s Paris art movement, started by Picasso and Braque before World War I, drew Mexican muralist Diego Rivera into its 'Salle 41' circle along with Foujita. Its biggest American collection is at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Which movement, known for painting objects as flat shapes seen from many sides at once, do the two cities host?

Accepted Answer

Cubism changed Western painting between 1907 and 1914 by breaking up objects into flat shapes seen from many angles at once. Mexican muralist Diego Rivera tried Analytical Cubism early in his career before going back to Mexico and joining the muralist movement, and the biggest American collection of Cubist works is at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Question 3

Which yearly heritage and culture festival, held in Jacksonville, Florida since the 1990s, has featured dozens of countries in its programs, including Colombia, Lebanon, Ethiopia and Vietnam?

Accepted Answer

The World of Nations Celebration was held every year in Metropolitan Park in Jacksonville, Florida, showing off food, music, dance and crafts from featured countries including Colombia, Lebanon, Ethiopia and Vietnam. For more than twenty years it was one of the city's biggest events.

Question 4

As a young art-school girlfriend, and later wife, of a rising Beatle, she moved into 251 Menlove Avenue in Liverpool's Woolton area (renting a room from Mimi Smith) while her husband was playing in the band in Hamburg. Which first wife of one of the Beatles, later divorced when Yoko Ono came into the picture, is being described?

Accepted Answer

Cynthia Lennon (born Cynthia Powell) married John Lennon in August 1962. While John was performing with the Beatles in Hamburg, she rented a room from his aunt Mimi Smith at 251 Menlove Avenue in Liverpool's Woolton area. They had a son, Julian, in 1963, and divorced in 1968 as John started his relationship with Yoko Ono.

Question 5

Called krupuk udang in Indonesian and Malay, this puffy shrimp-based snack is often served with takeaway Chinese food in Britain and other European countries. In which Southeast Asian country is it a special treat served in homes during Chinese New Year and Hari Raya?

Accepted Answer

Prawn crackers, called krupuk udang in Malay, are made from a paste of shrimp and tapioca starch, then steamed, sliced, dried and deep-fried until they puff up light and crisp. They come from Indonesia and Malaysia, where they are a treat during Chinese New Year and Hari Raya, and are also common with takeaway Chinese food in the United Kingdom and other European countries.

Question 6

This bean-based drink was first sent from Ethiopia to Yemen by Somali merchants from Berbera and Zeila, in what is now Somaliland. They got it from Harar and inland Ethiopia. Which drink, spread through the Muslim world by Sufi religious groups starting in the 1400s, do the two source?

Accepted Answer

Coffee first grew wild in the highlands of Ethiopia and Yemen. It was first sent from Ethiopia to Yemen by Somali merchants from the ports of Berbera and Zeila, who got the beans from Harar and inland Ethiopia. It spread through the Muslim world in the 1400s and 1500s thanks in part to Sufi religious groups. Harar is still one of the world's most prized single-origin coffee regions.

Question 7

This Palestinian-Jordanian expert on classical Arabic writing spent four years teaching at a college in Safed before earning his university degree at Cairo University in 1950. He later joined the famous cafe meetings of writer Naguib Mahfouz in Cairo through the 1950s and 1960s. Which book critic is being described?

Accepted Answer

Ihsan Abbas (1920-2003) was one of the most respected Arab book critics and editors of the 20th century. He spent four years teaching at a college in Safed before earning his university degree at Cairo University in 1950, and joined Naguib Mahfouz's famous cafe meetings in Cairo through the 1950s and 1960s. He later spent much of his career at the American University of Beirut.

Question 8

This little-known team sport, played on the bottom of a pool with short curved sticks and a lead puck while snorkeling, has national teams in over 25 CMAS countries including Japan and Spain, where Barcelona hosts club matches. Which sport, invented in England in 1954 and also called Octopush, connects them?

Accepted Answer

Underwater hockey (also called Octopush) was invented in England in 1954 by the head of a diving club who wanted to keep members interested in winter. National teams belonging to CMAS in more than 25 countries, including Japan and Spain, play the sport, and Barcelona often hosts international club matches. CMAS World Championships have been held about every two years since 1980.

Question 9

In this North American form of horse racing, Standardbred horses pull two-wheeled carts called sulkies over tracks that are almost always one mile long. Wisconsin Public Television has filmed local races, and Michigan's Salem Township is a training spot. Which trot-or-pace sport, whose top US tracks include the Red Mile in Lexington, is it?

Accepted Answer

Harness racing is different from regular flat racing because the horses trot or pace (rather than gallop) while pulling a driver in a sulky. Michigan's Salem Township is a well-known training and race spot, and Wisconsin Public Television has filmed local races. The Meadowlands in New Jersey and the Red Mile in Lexington, Kentucky are still the sport's top US tracks.

Question 10

Announced at NATO's 2016 Warsaw summit, after Russia took over Crimea, this plan sends multi-country army units to the alliance's most at-risk eastern edge. Starting in 2026, a Swedish-led group will also be based in Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland. Which NATO forward-deployment plan is it?

Accepted Answer

NATO's Enhanced Forward Presence was announced at the 2016 Warsaw summit and first sent four battle groups to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, NATO doubled the number to eight. From 2026, a Swedish-led group will also be based in Rovaniemi in Finnish Lapland.