Some really vague and airy-fairy clues today!! Regularly a hallmark of NJ.
ACROSS
2 - Producer gives up the gold in the market (6) - DIRECT
7 - Story — exactly romantic (4) - TALE ?
9 - Let out eventually all around (4) - OMIT ?
10 - Angrily reports them to an editor who is impatient (5,8) - {SHORT TEMPER*}{ED}
12 - It may be needed for the clutter in the computer (5,2) - CLEAN UP [CD]
13 - Girls are angry to review the regular steel factories finally (7) - {DAM<-}{S}{E}{L}{S}
15 - Language spoken in Afghanistan (4) - DARI [E]
17 - Marsupium (5) - POUCH [E]
18 - Flaunt the end of the dress oh! back in the West (4) - {S}{HO<-}{W}
19 - Plant from United Nations is uprooted in anger (7) - {G{UN}NERA*}
27 - Ground the tip of the almond in the drink (4) - {SOD}{A}
28 - Containers you find in the barn scattered around (4) - {U}RNS ?
29 - Treats contemptuously (6) - SPURNS [CD]
DOWN
1 - Beat up the rascal regularly left behind (6) - ?A{R}{S}{A}{L}
2 - Colours in a ribbon (10) - DECORATION [DD]
3 - Point out after the strange boat (4) - RAFT
4 - Help the Chief Engineer going around the old city (4) - {C{UR}E}
5 - Points out the lubricant turning the machinery (4) - GEAR
6 - Hot stuff that may be eaten with rice (8) - VINDALOO [CD]
8 - First test version helping pal to hear regularly (5) - {ALP*}{H}{A}
11 - Use one round container top to first accumulate the starch (7) - {TAP}{I}{O}{C}{A}
13 - Lay down authoritatively (7) - DECLARE [CD]
14 - Funny American put up in Spain has one hundred ‘I Owe You' instruments ultimately (10) - {SU<-}{SP}{I}{C}{IOU}{S}
16 - You collect the coins in an old city (8) - {A{S{U}NCIO*}N} Why call it an Old City?
20 - Again and again aired on television, the same episodes! (5) - RERUN [E]
22 - One undergoing the process of physical change (6) - AGEING [CD]
24 - Poor refugee is finally held by the soldier (4) - {M{E}AN}
25 - Politician follows His Excellency with the rope (4) - {HE}{MP}
26 - Get closer to some divine art form (4) - NEAR [T]
Hi all,
ReplyDeleteSorry for the deeeeelay, there is no way I could put up a delay msg as the internet itself was out and I was too lazy to go out to an internet parlour and put in a delay msg. Anyway it appears you'll had a good discussion under yesterday's post.
Now all of you can go and cook up a good Vindaloo the recipe is available at the link embedded in the main post.
Tomorrow may be late again as I am off to Coimbatore and the train gets in there at 8 AM only. Shall try to post from the train assuming I get a proper connection enroute.
I loved the answer for 8D at Mrs PP's Hub where it was entered as PEHLA :-)
ReplyDelete7 - Story — exactly romantic (4) - TALE ? LOVE story is romantic.We could write whatever we want.
ReplyDelete9 - Let out eventually all around (4) - OMIT ? EMIT. Again open to interpretation.
15 - Language spoken in Afghanistan (4) DARI [E] This is more straightforward. HANI [T] "Type of loloish languages spoken by hill tribes in northern Burma and neighbouring areas" according to wordweb.
21 - Notice the star on the side of the butterflies (7) - {AD}{MIRA}{L} Star and Mira ? Mira = A remarkable variable star in the constellation Cetus. Again wordweb online.
1 - Beat up the rascal regularly left behind (6) ?A{R}{S}{A}{L} {DO}{R}{S}{A}{L}. At least DORSAL means behind ... No idea why does DO mean to Beat up though.
Where Sankalak and others dish out cakes, NJ seems to relish giving out the recipe and let us bake our own versions. Can't say it isn't exciting.
ReplyDeleteDeepak, I think this blog has become an addiction for many readers here. It was sorely missed since 8-30 am today.
ReplyDelete13D - I thought of DICTATE also fitting in, since 'authority' is indicated. Just hazarding a guess.
6D - VINDALOO has come from Konkani, originally from Indo-Portuguese (Portuguese creole of India) vinh d'alho, literally, wine of garlic, from Portuguese vinho de alho. The origin finds a place in the botanical name of garlic - Allium Sativum.
In parts of India other than Goa and the western coast, it is likely to be mistaken to have potato as one of its main ingredients, because of ALOO. But in some recent versions of recipes, potato has been thrown in for good measure.
Can't help recalling a funny anecdote. A diner in a restaurant complained to the waiter that he could not find any aloo in aloo paratha. The waiter retorted by saying, "For that matter, you won't find Mysore in Mysore Paak either, sir!'
Dearly missing Sankalak, Neyartha, Gridman and think of taking sanyas from crossword for 2 weeks.
ReplyDeleteThe moment i saw it today morning, the feeling of let down happened. Some might have noticed my :( in the post itself.
Why can't NJ also set something like Sankalak, i guess if she does, we wouldn't be talking so much about the bad clues i suppose.
Anyway the tedium continues. Col. Can you put a countdown to Gridman in your post as well, that would probably be the only point of cheer every morning at 8.30 then
@Richard: Thanks for this illuminating post on 'vindaloo'. You can similarly write a piece on Feni too. It'd be much appreciated.
ReplyDelete@COL: 16DN ASUNCION: per Wikipedia, it's one of the oldest cities in South America. I don't do Jaggi ji's puzzles, so I'm able to enjoy the discussions on this page with a great deal of detachment.
@LNS
ReplyDeleteOld City and Oldest City have different connotations in my opinion
Except for a couple of doubtful clues, today's crossword was nice overall. I think this particular compiler doesn't really deserve the kinda criticism he/ she receives.
ReplyDeleteThe authors of THC are doing a pretty nice job and I appreciate them all for their efforts.
VJ,
ReplyDeleteYour post is likely to attract a torrent of responses.
@COL: Isn't 'one of the oldest cities' an old city?
ReplyDelete:)
VJ
ReplyDeleteAfter seeing the setter's name in the paper/online PDF version, are you still unsure that you have to use he/she?
I would think that criticism of any clue that a poster makes here is also buttressed by a statement why they think so.
So while I respect, value and indeed applaud your defence of the setter, I would request you to elaborate on "Except for a couple of doubtful clues..."
Q: Which clues bother you and why? Elucidate. (50 marks)
Richard
ReplyDeleteIs 'bolupu' a Konkani word?
I came across this in a chapter on Mangalore and its fish dishes in Samanth Subramanian's book Following Fish . A good read, with some four or five chapters yet to go.
VJ,
ReplyDeleteDid you say a couple of doubtful clues!! or was that a typo for a couple of doubtless clues? I must say you are a staunch fan of NJ maybe the only one.
Hi CV - 18:52
ReplyDeleteNice to get a query from you. Bolupu is a Tulu word for 'light', hence also used to mean 'morning' in some areas. For those who haven't heard much about Tulu language, it is a Dravidian language spoken widely and predominantly in the revenue districts of Dakshina Kannada (formerly South Kanara, with Mangalore as the administrative headquarters) and Udupi. For some communities, it is the mother-tongue as well. It is said to have had, in the days of yore, its own script, now almost extinct, remaining only in certain research books. Our friends like Satya here seem to have picked a limited Tulu vocabulary during their study stay in the education hubs like Mangalore and Manipal. (Are you listening, Satya?)
Coming back to bolupu, also doing a double role to mean morning, I think there is another parallel in Marathi. They call morning 'udya' or 'udhya' which originally means 'sunrise'.(E.g., Udaya TV).
As for its finding a mention in the aforesaid book, it intrigues me as to what it is doing in a work / chapter on fish dishes!
@CV: Do crosword compilers have an accepted set of reference texts for word definitions like the OED, for example? I'm sure wikipedia isn't one of them.
ReplyDelete@LNS: Crossword compilers (may their tribe increase) will use standard dictionaries.
ReplyDeleteThey need not necessarily be Chambers, Collins and Concise Oxford Dictionary - which are the most trusted ones and recommended to setters as well as solvers by reputed UK newspapers.
Whatever the referencce text is, it IS NOT and CANNOT BE wikipedia.
Richard
ReplyDeleteProbably I should have given the context.
I am afraid the meaning of the Tulu word that you have given so elaborately - for which thanks - does not fit in there.
The author refers to someone making a lovely, deep, gobbling sound while using a technique to catch fish (not while eating).
Perhaps it is just an echoical sound. If so, it should have been italicised.
Sorry if I was defecient earlier while raising the query.
BTW, any idea about Tipu Sultan Bathery (sic)?
LNS
ReplyDeletePerhaps OED (which I think is a multi-volume reference work) might be resorted to while settling doubts.
Ordinarily, if COD is thought to be less helpful, two-volume Shorter OED might be used. I have also seen and used a larger-format single volume Oxford dict. but I forget the exact title.
Richard
ReplyDeleteThe book's subtitle is Travels Around the Indian Coast and so dawns and dusks do find a mention!
The author consumes varieties of seafood.
The ch. on Kerala does tell you where you can get the best toddy.
Chaturvasi, I don't think TH gives out the profile of its compilers. Also, I don't know if Nita Jaggi is a real name or a pseudonym. It's always sounded like a made up name to me. So I think I'd go with "he/ she."
ReplyDeleteOn the subject of doubtful clues (IMO).... just to clarify.... no scores needed :)
7A, 9A: I don't really have an explanation. Seems to me like some random words have been thrown in (eventually, exactly etc.)
1D: No clue
23A: a redundant "e" in the clue.
Others might find a few more, but as far I can see, this is all I could find.
Colonel, "doubtful" or "doubtless"?
ReplyDeleteWell, is "some really vague clues" a typo? Did you really mean "some....?"
CV:Tippu Sultan had set up some bastions in parts of present day Karnataka and Kerala, which is proper English would be Tippu Sultan Battery. The spelling you have indicated is the locally used version and is also pronounced buth-airy. So not only spelling but pronunciation has also got 'adjusted' to local usages. The best known one is in Wayanad. There is one in Mangalore too.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteVJ
ReplyDeleteI won't make a tedious list.
I will mention just one:
It may be needed for the clutter in the computer (5,2) - CLEAN UP [CD]
The enu must be 5-2 because the clue as written leads to a noun. ('Clean up' is v. 'Clean-up' is n. or adj.)
It is this kind of a lack of attention to specifics that the posters here are unhappy about. In a crossword they would expect perfection or near perfection.
8D After the 'first test version' ALPHA, comes its son, the 'second test version' BETA (multilingual pun intended)
ReplyDeleteCV,
ReplyDeleteWhile the point you raised with ref to clean-up is relevant, with that clue at least one can get the answer. How about 6D? A variety of hot stuff can be eaten with rice, and there is no pointer to lead to the answer. I think it has to be guessed based on the crossings. Correct me if I am wrong.
CV 19:42 Re Bolupu
ReplyDeleteYour providing me with the context has put it in a totally different complexion now.
It could be either the name of the person, or a song of labour (folklore). In the coastal belt of Karnataka, the fishermen have the tradition of singing a set of songs, esp., when drawing the giant dragnets, locally called rampaNi, overflowing with a big catch. They are called rampaNi songs.
I will, at leisure, check on the bolupu context with my friends from the Mogaveera community - traditionally a fishermen's community but many of them are highly educated now and have made it big at the global level - and try to get an idea.
Re: Sultan Battery, Kishore has given you the full picture. 'Battery' is of course an English word in its military sense. It is now in vogue in its corrupt form 'Bathery' in the Wayanad district of Kerala and Mangalore in Karnataka.
The fortress in Mangalore, located against a picturesque backdrop of river Phalguni in Boloor, is also believed to have been built during the rule of Tipu Sultan, hence the name Sultan Battery. It was erected at a strategic location to keep an eye on the invading forces of the Potuguese from Goa towards the end of the 18th century.
It is a prominent tourist attraction in Mangalore now. It is also a protected monument. However, in the name of restoration, a few years ago, some muddle-headed officials of the Archaeological Survey of India got the structure cement-plastered and painted in vulgar beige, totally ruining its antique and heritage look.
Now it resembles a government godown! Indeed a monument to shame and callousness.
Giridhar
ReplyDeleteRe: Hot stuff that may be eaten with rice (8)
IMHO (where H is honest as well as humble) this is not a CD in its proper sense. It is a non-cryptic clue that Col Deepak usually classifies as E. A clue in a quick (or easy or straightforward) crossword will admit of different answers and often one has to wait for some crossings before one can confidently fill in. E.g., Scheme (4). Even with P_ _ _ one has to wait for one more crossing before one can put down a sol.
A CD, on the other hand, will rarely admit of a second answer. Usually it will lead unerringly, inexorably lead to the answer though it has to come from the top of your head.
Kishore, Richard: Thanks.
ReplyDeleteBoloor is indeed mentioned in the book as the name of a place, community and person.
To a query from the author, Boloor says: "The best Mangalore fish curry is not made in restaurants but in homes."
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThanks CV.
ReplyDeleteRe Battery/bathery
ReplyDeleteThe English word 'button' in Tamil is 'poththaan'.
It may have been 'boththaan' but because of possible misreading of the initial letter, it may have become 'poththaan' over the years or in some parts.
CV,
ReplyDeleteYour post reminds of the discussion we once had about lizard - is it 'Balli' or 'Palli'. In Telugu it is 'Balli'. I don't think we reached a conclusion which everyone agreed with.
We call it Palli and I think it's the most accepted version. There's no "B" sounding consonant in Tamil.
ReplyDelete@Richard,
ReplyDeleteAndu maaraya, enklege Tulu vanthe vanthe barpundu. Edde arthaapundu, paatherara edde barpujji.
:-)
CV, I agree it's an error, but personally, I tend to ignore such slips.
ReplyDeleteIt's really nice that you expect perfection. I appreciate it.
VJ said 'There's no "B" sounding consonant in Tamil".
ReplyDeleteI think this should be modified to read 'There's no "B" sounding word initial consonant in Tamil'.
LNS,
ReplyDeleteYou are right. I can right away think of words like 'anbu' , and 'munbu'
I stand corrected. B sound can happen in the middle or end of a word but not at the beginning.
ReplyDelete@CV: Some Mangalore communities (Chitrapur Saraswats) use place names as surnames: Boloor, Padukone (Vasanthkumar -better known as Gurudutt, Prakash, Deepika), Karnad (Girish), Kalyanpur (Suman), Hattangadi (Rohini), as do some Navayat communities: Bhatkal (Riyaz), Ankola (
ReplyDeleteSalil). I myself use Mangalore before my first name.
And have a good chuckle when some call centre telemarketer asks for Mr Mangalore (feels like a body building title !)
ReplyDeleteCV @ 10 June, 2010 21:10
ReplyDeleteRe 'clean-up', I fully endorse your point. Besides, the matter has been highlighted here more than once earlier. In verb form, it is 'to clean up the clutter' and in noun form 'a clean-up of the clutter'.
There is another case in the same grid. It is not SHORT TEMPERED but SHORT-TEMPERED. Compound adjectives made of two or more should have a hyphen, except in the cases of extremely-long words like COMPREHENSIVELY COMMUNICATED.
This compiler seems to be a regular in dropping the hyphens when necessary and inserting when not. A favourite is 'tip-off' to indicate omission of letter at the beginning of a word. It is just 'tip off'. 'Tip-off' can only be noun. You either tip off the police or give them a tip-off.
Hyphens are so vital in grammar. Once earlier in a discussion here, I had cited the example of a blurb printed on the packaging of some consumer item - CHOLESTEROL FREE, as if one would get cholesterol free when you buy the stuff. The corret form is 'cholesterol-free'.
CV, I think you had responded then saying you would never like to have free cholesterol.
I think in India, you just tip the police :-)
ReplyDeleteWell said, Kishore.
ReplyDelete