MBA students turned out from b-schools across south India, including Bangalore, Chennai, Manipal, Trichy and Calicut to participate in India’s best known battle of knowledge, intelligence and wit between future managers.

After the preliminary rounds on November 3, the teams that reached the debate finals were ISB Hyderabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Kozhikode and Loyola Institute of Business Administration (LIBA), Chennai.

While TA Pai Management Institute (TAPMI), Manipal, BIM Bangalore and the IIMs at Bangalore and Kozhikode made it to the regional quiz finals.

What ensued in the finals remains one of the most memorable rounds in Acumen and even Quizmaster Harsha Bhogle believed so. In the nearly one hour long quiz round, Shamnath M and Chinmay Mishra of IIM Kozhikode nearly blew their opponents to smithereens. When the dust finally settled, the final score read IIM Kozhikode – 230; IIM Bangalore – 60; TAPMI -30 and BIM – 20. The sheer enormity of the win forced the Harsha to comment, “IIMK has created history. I have not seen such a convincing and comprehensive victory in years!”

In another exchange that brought the audience to cheers, Harsha Bhogle responded to an answer by the IIM Kozhikode team saying, “I cannot give that to you, this is not what I’m looking for,” only to be countered by “But the answer is right!”. Harsha shot back, “Millionaires don’t worry about Pennies!”

Meanwhile in the debate finals, IIM Bangalore’s Sahil Barua and Sandeep Das brought cheers to their school by winning the regional round. Debating on the favorite Acumen topic ‘Leaders and born and not made’ and judged by Madura Garments President Mr Ashish Dikshit and Business Today’s Publishing Director Mr Pavan Varshnei, the team fought closely with the other finalists to snatch a convincing victory.

The third exciting aspect of Acumen, where working managers in top corporates come back to represent their alma maters in the Acumen Alumni quiz, was won in the south zone by Tanmay Prusty and Anish Raju.

Each of the three winner teams will face the finalists from north, east and west regions in Mumbai on December 15 2007 at Mumbai.

For those who missed out on the action, click on the links to download the complete sets of questions in the Acumen south zone B-school round and Alumni round.