The film is based on a memoir by 'Slawomir Rawicz' depicting his escape from a Siberian gulag and subsequent 4000 mile walk to freedom in India. Incredibly popular, it sold over 500,000 copies and is credited with inspiring many explorers. However, in 2006 the BBC unearthed records (including some written by Rawicz himself) that showed he had been released by the USSR in 1942 and the escape to India was entirely fictional. However, even Rwaicz critics, at least those who are knowledgeable about Soviet Union, feel the book has much truth in it. As Topolski concludes: "Even now, some people (including a few who have heard what happened to me) find it hard to believe that the conditions we faced in the USSR at that time were really that bad. The controversy over some of the facts in Rawicz's story does not detract from the book's literary value his book remains a great read."
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