Set over the course of a single day Jafar Panahi's powerful film is an ensemble piece that tells the stark tales of several young Iranian women & the harsh society in which they live. Beginning with a childbirth & the ensuing despair at the discovery that the baby is a girl the film touches upon the myriad hardships endured by women living in Iran's male dominated world of bureaucracy constant surveillance & age old inequalities. But even in the midst of this stifling environment the spirit strength & courage of the circle of women cannot be extinguished.