The family of the Indian woman Phoolan Devi (born in 1963) was low-caste and very poor. Maybe that was why she was married off to a man in his thirties at the tender age of 11. Anyway, after some time she left her husband and returned home to her parents, but at 15 she was abducted by a group of bandits which she decided to join after becoming the lover of the leader. The targets of the group were higher caste individuals and villages, and their exploits made lower caste people admire Phoolan. When the lover of Phoolan was killed by another fraction of the gang, she was raped by several of these gang-members, and she set out to revenge herself after having formed her own, new gang: She became a bandit queen in her own right.

In 1981 she raided village of Behmai where she had been held captive by her rapists. Approximately 22 men were shot, only 2 of them survived, and she was held responsible for this massacre, and was charged in absentia, but succeeded in evading capture for two years. After making a deal with the government, she surrendered peacefully, but was almost at once double-crossed by the authorities. That meant that she spent 11 years in prison without her case going to trial. In 1994 she was released and all charges against her were dismissed.

Not only was Phoolan released from prison, but she also entered politics, wanting to help other women and lower caste people. In 1996 she was elected to The Indian Parliament, but lost reelection in 1998. One year later she won it back, but was assassinated by three anonymous gunmen in 2001.

Her lifespan wasn't very long, but it's obvious that she achieved more than most people, who live double as long as she did. Her nickname was "Bandit Queen", and she was a criminal for several years, but also she became a genuine heroine to many people and is so even today.