K.A. Narayan

Tragedy strikes a family of four when the train they are travelling in meets with an accident and separates them from each other.

In India, girls from their very birth are taken for a liability upon their parents; thus the mothers of the nation are looked down on in their own homes. Kamala represents such afflicted Indian girlhood. She is the daughter of Judge Ram Pershad who is illiterate and has orthodox views about girls. She stands first in the Matriculation Examination and has an ardent desire for studying in college in order to become a doctor. Judge Ram Pershad is totally against college education for girls. It is his faith that any money spent on the sons alone is money well-spent merely because they are sons and will stand by him in his old age. Kamala is determined not to bow before injustice, but to secure her rightful place in society. She makes an all-out bid to join college with the contrivance of Dr. Ratanlal, a close friend of her father. In college, she comes across Shyam, who helps her in many difficult situations.

At an orphanage, Kailashnath identifies Vijay as his biological son and takes him home. Years later, a man named Ashok arrives and claims to be Kailashnath's real son.

Vinay finds himself constantly mistaken for a look-alike jewel thief. To clear his name, he joins hands with the police to impersonate the thief and catch the real culprit. When the thief decides to counter by posing as Vinay, their true identities become thoroughly muddled.

When a gangster named Heeralal gets arrested, he befriends Johny, a petty thief, in prison. He seeks Jony's help in executing his mission of smuggling a few diamonds. Johny, however, is an undercover CID officer named Sohan.

Childless Malti is married to a honest man, Kailash Nath, who one day brings home a newborn baby boy and asks her to take care of him. Malti names the boy Ashok, and brings him up as her very own. Thereafter she gives birth to two boys, Amar and Anand. When Kailash testifies against dreaded bandit & devil worshiper, Jabbar Singh, he is threatened with death. Jabbar is sentenced to be hanged, but before that could happen he is killed. Jabbar's son, Sheroo, avenges his father's death by killing Kailash. Sheroo is arrested by Kailash's friend, Inspector Om, and sentenced to 20 years. A dying Kailash informs Malti that Ashok is Devki's, his first wife's son, and makes her promise that she wil continue to love Ashok as her own, which she does, and Kailash passes away. When she returns home she finds out that Amar is missing, possibly drowned. She blames this on Ashok and starts hating him. Sheroo escapes from prison, abducts Inspector Om and holds him prisoner, whipping him regularly.

Two outlaws get in over their heads when they're suddenly entrusted with the care of a wealthy child. Beseeched by a dying man to look after the young Munni, the pair uncovers a puzzle when they try to locate her kin and collect a reward.