Art & Culture Current Affairs MCQs

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Recently, the Bonalu festival, one of Telangana’s most important traditional celebrations, began on June 26, 2025, at Sri Jagadambika Ammavari Temple in the historic Golconda Fort. Bonalu honours Goddess Mahakali, seen as the symbol of strength and protection. Thousands of devotees from Hyderabad and Secunderabad will join the celebrations over several weeks. The festival started with the golden bonam, a sacred offering to the goddess, marking the rituals of Ashada Masam, the Ashada month.

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Recently, the Maratha Military Landscapes of India were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, becoming India’s 44th World Heritage Site. The landscapes include 12 forts from the 17th to 19th centuries CE, showcasing the strategic brilliance and architectural skill of the Maratha Empire. These forts are located in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu and include Salher, Shivneri, Lohgad, Khanderi, Raigad, Rajgad, Pratapgad, Suvarnadurg, Panhala, Vijaydurg, Sindhudurg, and Gingee Fort.

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Harela festival is celebrated in Uttarakhand, with a pledge to plant over 5 lakh saplings across the state. This traditional Hindu festival, also celebrated in parts of Himachal Pradesh, is especially popular in Uttarakhand’s Kumaon region. Harela marks the beginning of the Sawan season. It symbolizes peace, prosperity, and the celebration of nature.

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Recently, more than 300 people were killed in a week of violent clashes between Syria’s Druze minority and Sunni Bedouin tribes in and around Sweida city. The Bedouins are nomadic, Arabic-speaking tribes who have lived in the Middle East and North Africa deserts for centuries. The word Bedouin comes from Arabic “badawi”, meaning “desert dweller”. They survive mainly by herding camels, sheep, and goats, moving seasonally across arid lands. Bedouin tribes are often classified based on the animal species they herd.

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Recently, Nashik rural police exposed a major black-marketing racket involving darshan passes at the famous Trimbakeshwar Shiva Temple. The Trimbakeshwar Temple is a revered Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, located in Trimbak town, 28 km from Nashik city, Maharashtra. It is situated near Brahamagiri mountain, the origin point of the river Godavari. The temple was built by the third Peshwa Balaji Bajirao on the site of an older shrine. It is one of the twelve sacred Jyotirlingas in India, making it a significant pilgrimage site.

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The first-ever Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Traditional Music Festival was held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. The event was inaugurated by External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar. It was organised by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) under the theme ‘SaptaSur: Seven Nations, One Melody’. Artists from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand performed. The festival celebrated the unique traditional music of all seven BIMSTEC countries.

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Narali Purnima was celebrated by the fishermen community especially the Kolis, in Mumbai, Thane, and Palghar. Narali Purnima marks the end of the monsoon season in Maharashtra. The Koli community, original inhabitants and mainly fishermen, observed the festival with great enthusiasm. As tradition, coconuts were offered to the sea to pray to Lord Varuna for calm waters and protection from natural calamities. Koliwadas (fishermen colonies) in Mumbai were decorated with colourful traditional rangolis. Groups of Koli men and women performed dances in traditional costumes across lanes of Koliwada.

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A newly found unidentified early hominin fossil may represent a new species. It confirms that Australopithecus and Homo species coexisted in the same African region and timeframe. Australopithecus is a genus of extinct primates, closest relatives of humans (genus Homo). They lived between 4.4 million to 1.4 million years ago during the Pliocene and Pleistocene epochs. Fossils were discovered in eastern, north-central, and southern Africa. The name means “southern ape,” first identified in South Africa. The most famous specimen is “Lucy,” a 3.2-million-year-old fossil from Ethiopia.

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Assam will likely get the 16th-century “Vrindavani Vastra” from the British Museum in London for exhibition in 2027. The Vrindavani Vastra is a silk textile woven in Assam. It depicts childhood stories and divine pastimes of Lord Krishna in Vrindavan. It was created under the guidance of Vaishnav saint Srimanta Sankardeva. Koch king Nara Narayan commissioned it and gave refuge to Sankardeva after conflict with the Ahom kingdom. The textile travelled from Assam to Tibet and was acquired by the British Museum in 1904. It is a sacred masterpiece and central to Assamese Vaishnavism.

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Karma Puja, a traditional folk festival, is observed on Ekadashi Tithi of the bright fortnight in Bhadrapada (Bhado) month. In 2025, the Karam Festival was celebrated on Wednesday, September 3. Sisters observe a fast for the long life of their brothers and worship the sacred Karam branch. The Karam branch symbolizes divinity and nature, revered by tribal communities. The festival is significant in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha.