No 14592, Thursday 18 Sep 2025, Vidwan

Solution to 1D has been deliberately left unsolved and is to be answered only by a non-regular / novice commenter, with proper annotation. Those who have answered earlier in the week, please give others a chance. 

Open for anyone to solve, if not solved by 1 PM.

ACROSS

1   Famous teen having very old records (7) ARCHIVE {ARCHI{V}E}

5   Cretan Princess injured in a dare (7) ARIADNE*

9   That is covering seed barely from inside the womb (2,5) IN UTERO {I{NUT}E}{fROm}

10 I stamp merrily on old, thick layer of paint (7) IMPASTO {I}{STAMP}*{O}

11 Adult, radicalised a bit (5) ULTRA [T] Semi&lit?

12 Oddly Russia is a nation (3) USA rUsSiA

13 Some malai kababs for a Siberian dog (5) LAIKA [T]

14 Lady's there! Naked! (3) HER [T]

15 Stone dealer moving around millions (7) EMERALD {E{M}ERALD*}

17 Disheartened, idealistic, close to penury and bitter (3) ICY {Id...iC}{p...rY}

18 Roger's missing stirred up fear (3) AWE AWokE

19 A squire holding an appropriate perquisite (7) APANAGE {A}{P{AN}AGE}

23 Fire shaft left ignored (3) AXE AXlE

25 Dominant problem, perhaps for mountainsides (5) ISSUE {DOMINANT+ISSUE}*=MOUNTAINSIDES [CA]

26 Calm and anger mixed! That is miracle! (3) IRE {IRE+CALM}*=MIRACLE [CA]

27 Sheeplike or cowlike, not black! (5) OVINE bOVINE

28 Destroying his ego without resistance is villainous (7) OGREISH {HIS+EGO}* over {R}

29 Office fellow replaced by right one for an opening (7) ORIFICE {O{-f+r+1}RIFICE

30 Free love - cost involved in simple joy! (7) ECSTASY {E{CoST}ASY}

31 Seaman's dancing in a group (2,5) EN MASSE* There's an extra A and an E short in the fodder

DOWN

1   Bearing of leader of Zaire boarding train - sophisticated, not ordinary, not cold (7) A?I?U?H (Addendum - AZIMUTH - {A{Za..e}IM}{cOUTH} - See comments)

2   Court sees man rue, shifts to corrective actions (15) COUNTERMEASURES*

3   Repeat freely, repeat it, without pressure (7) ITERATE {REpEAT+IT}*

4   Love lying around with turtles occasionally, on a kind of curve (7) EVOLUTE {LOVE<=}{tUrTlEs}

5   Jehangir skinned, cut founder of Mughal dynasty for a big Chinese corporate (3,4) ALI BABA {sALIm}{BABAr} Founder was BABUR and not BABAR

6   Kind of ideal cops, lawmaker ran through (7) IMPALED {I{MP}ALED*}

7   Differences arising due to Princess' correspondences (15) DISSIMILARITIES {DIS}{SIMILARITIES}

8   My American ego hurts over vote for inter-community marriage (7) EXOGAMY {MY+A+EGO}* over {X} Hurts as Anind?

16 Managed unlimited endowment (3) RAN gRANt

18 Fat head of anarchists is surprisingly poised (7) ADIPOSE {An...s}{POISED*}

19 Bit of a dreamer, Icarus found a land across the pond (7) AMERICA [T]

20 A priest is devout, rejects love in foolish manner (7) APISHLY {A}{P}{IS}{HoLY}

21 Plant name, exotic one (7) ANEMONE {NAME}*{ONE}

22 It’s more about sensuality (7) EROTISM*

24 Interpreter of religious text crosses borders, hexed to come to England (7) EXEGETE {hEXEd}{GET}{E}

Reference List

Very = V, Old = O, Millions = M, Roger = OK, Left = L, Black = B, Resistance = R, Fellow = F, Right = R, Cold = C, Pressure = P, Lawmaker = MP, Princess' = DI'S, Priest = P, England = E