An author - a passive young man - enters the Soviet-controlled bureaucracy of Georgia attempting to get his novel published only to be neglected and compartmentalized at every turn.
A young idealist takes a job at a local state run winery only to discover and become disillusioned by the corruption of the Soviet State.
Countryman Dato falls in love with uptown girl Eka. But, their romance faces difficulties due to Dato's revolver-like lighter, which Eka's tough father mixes with a real gun.