The 1960 restored version added a frame story with an elderly main character Stepan Kulagin, again performed by N. S. Kryuchkov. Also, all references to Stalin were removed.
The original Soviet 'shock worker' and miner, Alexey Stakhanov (1906-1977) was consultant on the film and prototype for the main character Stepan Kulagin. (See also: Stakhanovite movement, Udarnik).
Valentina Karavayeva's debut.