Thousands of migrants travel from Tajikistan to Russia each year in search of work. For many, the trip begins with a grueling four-day train journey from Dushanbe to Moscow, during which they endure police inspections, cramped quarters and brutal heat.
RFE/RL correspondents Mumin Shakirov and Alexander Kulygin traveled with a group of Tajik migrants on one such journey, experiencing the same hardships and recording the stories, hopes, and fears of four people seeking work in Russia.
In the first part of the series, we meet judo instructor Muhammed Ali and schoolteacher Jamshed Nabiev, who bid farewell to their families and friends in Dushanbe before they board the train.
