Overview
After her mother's death, Irja, an evacuee girl, finds herself in a poor financial situation. Working as a housekeeper for her former teacher on a starvation wage, her situation improves when she is hired as a janitor at a secondary school. Despite the opposition of Principal Kuusi, she decides to take the matriculation examination and, in order to improve her writing skills, responds to a correspondence advertisement placed by the mysterious Master Ahtojää.
| Actor | Age then | Age now | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 18 | January 1, 2002 (65) | |
 | 46 | May 24, 1982 (73) | |
| 31 | August 29, 1993 (69) | |
 | 38 | February 18, 2010 (93) | |
 | 43 | June 7, 1988 (76) | |
 | 46 | July 4, 1970 (61) | |
| 50 | May 3, 1984 (78) | |
 | 47 | September 12, 1975 (67) | |
| 57 | March 3, 1992 (94) | |
| 57 | July 9, 1987 (89) |