Vanja Orico as Maria Clódia in The Bandit / O Cangaceiro (1953)
("Cangaceiro" was a pejorative expression used to refer to bands of poor peasants who inhabited the northeastern deserts of Brazil. They wore leather clothing and hats covered in symbols and metal ornaments. They carried carbines, revolvers, shotguns, and the long narrow knife known as the peixeira.
The 1920s and 1930s saw the height of cangaceiro activity, with the most prominent bands numbering up to as many as 100 bandits. The bandits often behaved well to the poorer sections of society. They performed acts of charity, bought goods for higher than usual prices from small shopkeepers and gave free parties / bailes. In contrast, the wealthy were robbed, targeted for extortion, and were often kidnapped and held for ransom.)
In 1968, an episode marked Vanja's life forever. At the key moment of the burial of student Edson Luís, killed by a military dictatorship, she stood in front of the army, raised a white handkerchief and shouted "Don't shoot, we are all Brazilians." Vanja was imprisoned for 3 days. She wasn't tortured, but she took "a few blows to the head."