During the event, Ujjwala Maharjan, one of the founding members of Word Warriors, talked about her time in school when Nepali elocutions took place in the month of Asar to commemorate the birth anniversary of the much-celebrated Nepali poet Bhanubhakta Acharya. Thus, it was only natural for her to host the competition on the poet’s birthday. The event reflected a growing interest in Nepal for slam poetry, as was made clear by the enthusiastic presence of people interested in the medium.

Winners were determined after two rounds of performances: the first round saw performance by all sixteen participants, which was whittled down to seven in the second round.

The eventual winners were Nawaraj Parajuli, Aakash Baral and Krishna Thapa Magar. The judges included Yukta Bajracharya (founding member of Word Warriors), Samip Dhungel (Word Warriors’ instructor), Shiva Bhusal and Janam Maharjan (Winners of the QC Awards 2013). The participants were marked on a scale of ten, a cumulative score for both poetry and performance.

“Competition brings out the best in us,” said Ujjwala  Maharjan, speaking from her own experience of performing in the QC Awards 2010. The winners received certificates and gift hampers from Pranab Man Singh, director of Quixote’s Cove.