Kathmandu: With the objective of ensuring the all-round development of students, Bright Future Secondary School, located in Satdobato, Lalitpur-15, has been providing training to students according to their interests and abilities through 30 subject-based and creative clubs.
The school has formed 30 different clubs, including Avakas, Phoenix, quiz, spelling, dance, music, drama, arts, futsal, basketball, table tennis, chess and badminton, with the aim of identifying the hidden talents of students and providing them opportunities to flourish. According to the school, students are regularly provided with training, practice sessions and opportunities to participate in various competitions through these clubs.
Ram Raman Humagai, Head of Administration at the school, said that club activities provide students with opportunities to go beyond textbook-based knowledge and develop creativity, self-confidence, leadership skills, discipline, teamwork and a competitive spirit. He said that students have also been achieving excellent results in various inter-school and local-level competitions.
As part of its efforts to provide a platform for students’ talent and creativity, the school is set to stage a play titled ‘Lauro’, performed by students, from Bhadra 24 to 27 at Kunj Theatre in Thapagaun, Baneshwor, Kathmandu.
The play portrays the current situation of the country and highlights the growing trend of young people migrating abroad and villages gradually becoming empty of youth. It presents the shortage of young people in villages, the loneliness of elderly parents and the growing distance within families.
The play features performances by Sanrakshan Mishra, Rimun Dahal, Sushana Sanjel, Agrata Adhikari, Aarogya Shrestha, Abhiman Shrestha, Abhimanyu Bhatt, Risona Tasnim, Utprerana Pandit, Rasil Basnet, Shreya Sunuwar, Anshu Basnet, Sushant Ghimire and Drishtina Bohora.
Stage management has been handled by Prasij Ghimire, while props management has been undertaken by Reshmi Rai. The lighting design has been done by Prakash Dahal, and Rubin Sunar has worked as the assistant director. The play has been written and directed by Pushparaj Awasthi.
Director Awasthi says the concept of the play emerged from both a personal experience and the realities seen in contemporary society.
He recalls, “Once, I saw a video on social media in which a small child was crying while tightly embracing his mother as she was leaving to go abroad. That scene reflected the present situation of our country. The image remained in my mind for many days.”
He said the scene also reminded him of his own life, having left his parents in the village and moved to the city to pursue his dreams.
“I remembered that my parents may have wished to stay at home and play with their grandchildren. Although we are in the same country, because of the distance, I sometimes feel that I am living abroad from the perspective of my parents,” he said.
Awasthi said that he is often unable to be with his parents when they face difficulties or hardships. “They may wish to live with their son and daughter-in-law and enjoy playing with their grandchildren as if they themselves were children again. But the present reality is completely different,” he said.
He said that analyzing this situation from the perspective of parents was emotionally difficult for him. “I wanted to understand their feelings and write a play based on this situation from their point of view. That is how the concept of ‘Lauro’ was developed,” he said.
According to him, the play is not only the story of his own family but also the shared story of many families in Nepal. It emotionally portrays the growing distance between family members and the loneliness of elderly parents as young people migrate abroad or move to cities in search of opportunities.
Humagai said that the play, prepared through the students’ own practice, creativity and performances, is being presented on a professional theatre stage.
According to him, staging the play will provide students not only with acting skills but also important opportunities to develop communication skills, expressive abilities, teamwork, time management and self-confidence.
The school’s Principal, Basudev Koirala, said that students’ education should not be limited only to classrooms and examination results.
“Every child has some kind of talent. The responsibility of a school is to identify that talent, provide opportunities and help students reach excellence,” he said.
According to him, the school has given equal priority to academic achievement as well as the development of students’ abilities in sports, arts, music, dance, drama, language, reasoning and creativity.
“We want to create an environment where every student can move forward in the field of their interest,” Principal Koirala said.
Bright Future has been promoting club activities not merely as extracurricular activities but as an important foundation for students’ personality development and future building. The staging of the play ‘Lauro’ is also an important part of this campaign.
Through the production, students will have the opportunity to present the skills they have learned within the school on a real professional theatre stage and showcase their talents before audiences.
The play ‘Lauro’ will be staged from Bhadra 24 to 27, 2083, with three shows daily at 7:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.