September 1970. Ramchandra Singh enters the Hardoi District Jail in Uttar Pradesh as a naxalite undertrial. Barely twenty, his life of expanding prospects–in studies, politics and love–is reduced to the horizon of a life term. The odds are stacked against the survival of his humanity and imagination, but Singh regenerates his gifts of empathy, humour, reflection and, above all, language–in a secret diary smuggled out with the help of friends. 13 Years offers an unprecedented intimacy with the everyday life of the imprisoned everyman. It challenges us to look without flinching and question our assumptions about crime and punishment.
