History

Just as India participates in the (British) Commonwealth Games, it also participates in the Portuguese equivalent, The Lusophony Games (Jogos da Lusofonia).

In Sanskrit literature and particularly in the Manu Smriti, the region between the Himalayas and the Vindhyas was known as आर्यावर्त (Āryāvarta), the abode of the Aryans.

The trio of Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, and Bipin Chandra Pal were collectively known as Lal-Bal-Pal.

The first entirely Indian bank was the Oudh Commercial Bank. It was established in 1881 in Faizabad (Saket) and functioned until 1958.

Prior to 1956, State Bank of India was actually the Imperial Bank of India which itself traced its roots to the Bank of Calcutta which was established in 1806.

The Middle English spelling for India was Ynde. The word Indies is derived from this variant.

Tomatoes and potatoes, staples of Indian cuisine, were not present in India before European colonisation. They are native to the New World, the Americas which were discovered only in the 15th century.

Cinema reached India for the first time in 1896 thanks to The Lumière brothers who were touring the world screening short silent films. They screened six films at the Watson Hotel in Bombay.