Kathmandu School days were filled with fun where children of similar age groups grew up and learnt together while gearing up for the future. Lending help to their growing up and building their future were teachers of various kinds — loving, caring, supporting and motivating. However, there were a few whom we feared because they gave us severe punishments. Putting forth the story of such terrifying teachers is the play Upiyako Nibandha directed by Kedar Shrestha being staged at Theatre Mall, Sundhara. The play is a satire on the teaching-learning methodology practised in the Nepali education system. A teacher who teaches Nepali subject (Rajendra Bhatta) is a terror. The students are scared of him because he scolds and beats them for trivial reasons. Moreover, the teacher is not able to teach them effectively. The students unable to tolerate his terrorism in the class any more decide to lodge a complaint against him with their Head Sir (Roshan Subedi). However, the teacher comes to know about the complaint. Does a mere complaint bring any change in the teacher? Or does he become more cruel towards his students? As one watches the play unfold, one realises the absurdity of the teaching-learning methodology in schools through humour. The students Mahesh (Abhay Baral), Mira (Sanjita Sanji), Pradip (Praku Pandey), Pramila (Laxmi Bardewa), Jyoti (Binita Gurung), Rajiv (Bijay Tamrakar), Sara (Anna Deuja) and Suman (Shankar Bhandari) make the classroom lively with their mischief, quarrels, fights, gossips, and their loving and caring nature. Their presentation bring back old memories of school. Portrayal of a hen by Pandey in the classroom makes one laugh due to his funny acting. He is so natural that you want to roll on the floor laughing. Sanji speaking in a Newari tone, Deuja enacting the way so-called upper class people converse (with respect) and Pandey and Bhandari doing a caricature of their Nepali teacher make one walk down memory lane and one can’t stop laughing at these moments. Besides, Baral’s recitation of the essays of upiya (flea), cow, bird and fish are comical too. He is able to express his fear, emotions, and his awkward nature through his acts. Bhatta as the Nepali teacher is able to present himself as a cruel teacher who punishes his students severely. He has gotten into the skin of his character. Krishna Dai (Jivan Bhattarai), who is in the role of a peon of the school, reminds of the joyful peon whom one loved in one’s school days. Even the setting of the play has captured the essence of the classroom one attended. The bright lights used and the origami items of swan, boat, umbrella among others give the stage a real feel of the classroom. In addition, sacks reused to make bags is another good idea presented in the play. The play has reflected on schools in many ways. The concept of students wearing different uniforms is able to represent different schools in the country. The teacher not writing correctly on the blackboard has been able to reflect how teachers are unconcerned about their work. Director Shrestha has been able to show how the teaching-learning process is not more than a parrot teaching, with realistic story and comical acting of the artistes. The play is being staged every day at 5:30 pm except on Wednesdays with an additional staging on Saturdays at 1:30 pm till July 17.