On the outskirts of a town a bit outside of Istanbul, a well digger and his apprentice are attempting to find water in the vast area of dry soil. As they toil under the summer sun, digging themselves deeper and deeper into the earth, they form a friendship and tell each other stories that reflect different worldviews. It's just two of them - the poor, unwed man and the young boy, who lost his father who was imprisoned for political dissent.

They run errands in the town and relax after a day's work. That is where the boy first sees the red-haired woman, becoming obsessed with her—and she with him. The boy's wildest dreams come true, but a moment of negligence leads to an accident that fatally injures the well digger, causing the boy to flee back to Istanbul.

Several years go by before he realises that he was perhaps not to blame for his master's death and learns the identity of the red-haired sorceress. 

A captivating story about kinship and love, about east and west, tradition and modernity written by one of our greatest contemporary storytellers.