The film tells Esther Phiri's story. She is famous for being
Zambia's first female boxer, and for winning seven welterweight world championships. But her story started earlier, in the slums of
Lusaka, where she was left impoverished by her father's death from malaria when she was 15, and then became a single mother at the age of 16. Education was not a possibility for her, as she spent her days selling fruit and vegetables at the outdoor market to survive. She became interested in boxing after a demonstration at an
AIDS awareness event, and tells how she faced ridicule for this interest. However, Phiri persevered, in spite of pressure to marry and have children. In a country where the average life expectancy is 40, and over 80% of the population live in poverty, and where HIV/AIDS, at epidemic rates, is twice as likely to impact women – Phiri beat the odds in terms of both culture and gender, and became a success. Phiri, who is sometimes called the "Laila Ali of Zambia" and sometimes "the real Million Dollar Baby", found herself torn, in the midst of her success, between her personal life and her professional goals. Her fame made her a symbol of women's independence – a position not everyone in her family or culture viewed as a positive thing. At the height of her success, she met a man to whom she became engaged, but found herself under pressure from her trainer not to marry because it would detract from her career, and on the personal side, to give up her career to invest in having a family. At that point, Phiri chose her career. This dilemma is a central theme of the film. In 2012, Phiri announced she was leaving boxing, though she made a comeback later on. In the film, Phiri expresses her desire to see more girls and women pursue sports as a means to independence and empowerment, and a way to evade the many pitfalls of Zambian life, including poverty, drugs, crime and
STDs. "This is the first time I’m really opening up for people to see me as Esther Phiri, the woman, not the boxer. It’s scary to be this open, but I think it’s important to share my story, so that people can see that even success comes with a price. We work hard, but we also have personal struggles to overcome. I hope my story shows young girls that they can do everything they want to do, and inspire them, no matter their circumstances." Phiri's desire may be coming true, as more and more girls are taking up boxing in her country and are considered to have "raised the bar" in the sport. == Production ==