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 fourth part of the series, the Dushanbe-Moscow train crosses into Turkmenistan, and the RFE/RL correspondents narrowly escape with their footage after Turkmen police suspect them of spying.