Friday 1 August 2014

No.11152, Friday 01 Aug 2014, From the files of Sankalak

It is always a pleasure to blog a Sankalak puzzle

ACROSS
1 Last month, the French engineer was to make an announcement (7) DECLARE (DEC LA RE)
5 Set free the backward wickedness borne by the German (7) DELIVER (LIVER on DE) (VILE< in DER) See comments
9 Famous painting by Raphael (7,3,5) MADONNA AND CHILD (GK)
10 Isolated area that may get hot somehow (6) GHETTO (GET HOT)*
11 Actor, not really antagonistic to the lead player (8) ANTIHERO (CD)
13 Sound first heard by caller from a singer suppressed by agitated Enid (4,4) DIAL TONE (ALTO in ENID*)
          This sound is now heard only by some of us dinosaurs who are sometimes immobile
15 Away in Baroda, lost (6) ABROAD (BARODA*)
18 Engineer in favour of starting evaluation in advance (6) BEFORE (BE FOR E)
19 Dawn marking a 24-hour recess (8) DAYBREAK (DAY BREAK)
22 He enlivens the soul, reversing decay (8) ANIMATOR (ANIMA ROT<)
24 Nothing very stupid in this Danish city (6) ODENSE (O DENSE)
27 Where to read to find hidden meaning in the text (7,3,5) BETWEEN THE LINES (CD)
          Reading between the lines, I'd say our cartoonists are obsessed with lines (curves or otherwise) and things between them, and rightly so ...

Cartoon by Rishi

Cartoon by Bhargav
28 Final stage of play to finish what is hunted (3,4) END GAME (END GAME)

29 Blunder by a girl, backing a cat perhaps (7) MISSTEP (MISS PET<)

DOWN
1 Journal (English) kept by father is spoilt (7) DAMAGED (MAGazine E in DAD)
2 Core group has to worry about daughter (5) CADRE (CARE about D)
3 He makes explanatory notes on “Art at Noon” perhaps (9) ANNOTATOR (ART AT NOON)*
4 Enthusiasm shown by an angel animatedly (4) ELAN (T)
5 Racket at home over a bit of gracious eating (6) DINING (DIN IN G)
6 Fruit for one lunch — it is prepared with nut removed (5) LICHI (1 LUNCH IT-NUT)*
7 Verbal expression of support or otherwise in the House (5,4) VOICE VOTE (GK)
8 The growth that a revolutionary courted without energy (7) REDWOOD (RED WOOED - E)
12 Worker upsets Indian state authorities initially (3) ANT (TN A)<
14 With botched facelift, daughter is distressed (9) AFFLICTED (FACELIFT* D)
16 Innocent, childlike women, playthings for little kids (4,5) BABY DOLLS (2)
17 Mechanical device found in English river (3) CAM (2)
18 Beginning to bluster, mob is in a brawl (7) BRABBLE (B RABBLE)
20 See punk disgraced in a riotous party (5-2) KNEES UP (SEE PUNK)*
21 British measure that could recoil (6) BOUNCE (B OUNCE)
23 A haven accommodating the oat grass (5) AVENA (T)
25 Musicians finding unity in the books (5) NONET (ONE in NT)
26 Sudden change of mind of wife over that man (4) WHIM (W HIM)

GRID :

A bonus cartoon from Rishi for yesterday's prime phrase*
* Typing this I wondered how a seraph* can be debriefed after an earthly mission if he went commandoin the first palc ...

36 comments:

  1. Slight corr in anno:
    5 Set free the backward wickedness borne by the German (7) DELIVER (LIVER on DE)

    D(ELIV<-)ER

    ReplyDelete
  2. With so much snooping going on, overheard in some houses this morning:
    (1) " This is too much. I have to draw a line..."
    (2) "Go hang (the clothes) on the clothesline..."
    (3)"You! That line is mine!"

    ReplyDelete
  3. Let's have some uses of the word 'line'.

    I always travel by the line bus

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  4. Telephone operator Miss Fonseca: "Boss, help! All my lines are down?"

    Line in the sense of telephone connection.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am yet to fall in line with you stalwarts!
    Today's score about 95%

    ReplyDelete
  6. Cricket commentator: Here comes xxx from the Pavilion end. His line and length - always so perfect.

    Line and length here go hand-in-hand.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Put UNCOVER for 5 across, COCOA (-NUT) for 6 down and got stuck up for 5 down AND 11 across. For ANT, I could not be an ANNOTATOR

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  8. Live lines could be shocking! Achtung!

    ReplyDelete
  9. 'Give me more' from the files of Sankalak.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Line in Tamil ! = "Enna machchi. andha ponnukku line poadraya?"

    ReplyDelete
  11. 5D def,-'eating' to be highlighted.

    ReplyDelete
  12. The McMahon Line was part of the Simla treaty.

    Line = Boundary

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  13. Punch line for the day, Paddy's 9:20

    ReplyDelete
  14. Replies
    1. Col.,
      Thank you. My 9.46 was in response to CG's McMohan line!

      Delete
  15. Col. : You will surely remember: Lamba daine, Chhota baye, ek Line-me...

    ReplyDelete
  16. Good fitness crossword.
    A small nit to pick on 23D. 'accommodating being the indicator for the hidden solution, can it also be a part of the fodder for the answer?

    ReplyDelete
  17. Such a pleasure solving a Sankalak puzzle. God bless your soul, Sir.
    Wish the new setters would emulate his style.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Definitely an enjoyable puzzle,
      And no disrespect but I don't think it's right for a setter to emulate an other for the sake of a bigger audience . Each setter has his/her own unique approach , understanding of rules, cloying background and inspirations that ultimately brings out a new flavour to the crossword and that must be respected.at times one is able to identify the setter by solving their work :)

      Delete
    2. The pleasure I derive on solving Sankalak's puzzle is unique, because it fits into the way I have learnt to solve crosswords a few decades back. Sankalak had mastered the "arts" of Crossword clueing while the new setters are looking at the "science" of Crossword clueing , IMO

      Delete
    3. I don't mean that
      Off the head I look forward to buzzer's tricky word plays and tightness, incognito's breeze , mac's less worded clues, sunnet's well-crafted pangrams etc.. Everyone's unique in their own way. There is no point in emulating a setter. Improvement might be another thing

      Delete
    4. I have to agree with Exa on style of each setter albeit for me Sankalak is(still) the greatest setter

      Delete
  18. Jahaan mai khada rehta hun, wahanse LINE shuroo hota hai

    Standing in a LINE is an unknown in India !

    All if us fall hook , LINE and sinker for SANKALAK'S crossies.

    Am I crossing the LINE, if I mentioned about the downfall of Nehru's dynastic LINE?

    Of course, nothing like theLashman Rekha line !!



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  19. CG's cricket commentary at 9.16-
    'XXX bowling...'
    XXX sounds 'rum'my!

    ReplyDelete

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