Bastau

In a remote village on the Kazakh steppe, Mariam lives with her husband and four young children in a home without light or water. One winter day, her husband disappears. Without a body, he cannot be declared dead and Mariam is unable to receive state financial support. A very reserved person who buries her emotions, she must face survival of her family on her own in the harsh, rural winter. Inspired by actual events in Mariam's life, who portrays herself in a film that blurs documentary and drama as it paints her life's mundane details.

Anar marries Marat and lives with him and his son Adil. Pregnant Anar requires care, as she is anemic and at a high risk of miscarriage. When Marat hastens their move to the countryside, Anar finds herself in unfamiliar surroundings. Then Marat leaves to ask Anar′s father for a job and goes missing. Soon his creditors visit Anar. To make matters worse, Anar learns that Adil was raped. Now she begins a lonely fight to protect Adil.

These people know genuine difficulties and disappointments, but do not succumb for the sake of eating potatoes by the light of a lamp.

Ayaulym is forced to live in a boarding school, where cruel rules prevail, and children are at enmity with each other. He wants to return home, and this dream comes true when her father dies. However, huge debts fall on the shoulders of the widow and her daughter.