It was during 1980 when Nepal was reeling under the repressive Panchayati system that a group of young students staged a play, "Murdabad ma utheka hathharu (Hands raised in protest)" at the Tribhuwan University Auditorium in Kathmandu. The play's target was the government, with artists depicting the grave realities of the political upheaval in the country. For that brave act, the ruling political elite of the time banned the play ; however, they couldn't suppress the wave erupting inside these theatre artists who got more untied and thus was born Sarwanam Theatre Group in A.D 1982.

Today, Sarwanam has established itself as the leading theatre group of the Himalayan Kingdom. Also the pioneer of street theatre in Nepal, it has been successful to triumph over the dominating rule of the traditional and conventional proscenium theatre by introducing alternative theatre that requires little or no artificial props on the stage. Conventional theatre is expensive due to its lavish settings and props. It doesn't offer much to a developing country like Nepal. Earlier, theatre was only focused towards the elite and privileged classes. Alternative theatre was devised as a need to reach out to the common people that accumulated the large population of the country.

Sarwanam emphasizes on mime and symbolic body movements to express social based stories in a distinctive style. It's heart rendering social plays express the plight of sufferers from all across the country. Since its initial days, Sarwanam has been constantly fighting to attain democracy in the nation through its highly artistic plays. It has traveled to more than 70 districts including the most rural areas of the country delivering social messages and advocating democracy through its street plays. It has also established more than 20 theatre groups in various communities by assisting them in training and other activities.