Widowed Advocate Triloki Prasad (Om Prakash) lives a comfortable life in a small Indian town, supported by his two sons, Ashok and Alok (Amitabh Bachchan). Ashok is married to Geeta, while Alok, who harbors a deep love for music, has not yet settled into the family law firm. He enrolls in music classes run by Pandit Jamuna Prasad (A.K. Hangal), signaling a path that could diverge from the dull routine of courtrooms and ledgers.
On Triloki’s return, he asks Alok to accompany Ashok to the firm and start learning the trade, a request Alok agrees to honor. Yet his heart keeps pulling him toward the cluttered lanes of the town’s slums, where he spends time with a former courtesan, Sarju Bai Banaraswali. Triloki cautions him about such distractions, but Alok continues his visits, driven perhaps by a longing for a different kind of purpose and connection.
Trouble erupts when Mr. Gupta (Yunus Parvez) approaches Triloki with a plan to seize and demolish the slum area. Using his legal acumen, Triloki maneuvers the court to favor Gupta, rendering Sarju Bai and others homeless. The windfalls from this decision tempt Triloki, who uses the fee to push Alok toward a new idea of mobility: purchasing a used car. Yet Alok chooses a horse-carriage and decides to drive it himself, trying to carve out a living on his own terms. This move infuriates Triloki, who orders him to leave the house.
As the family dynamics intensify, Triloki learns that Alok is finding some success in his independent work, prompting him to counter with a broader strategy: he hires motor coaches to transport people at a cheaper price, aiming to undercut Alok’s enterprise and perhaps force him to rethink his stance and return home. The town’s tensions—between old values, economic pressures, and the lure of personal freedom—play out against the backdrop of a stubborn father and a son who wants to prove himself on his own terms.
The remainder of the film tracks Alok’s resilience as he navigates a maze of challenges, while Triloki tests the boundaries of duty, pride, and family loyalty. Throughout, the question lingers: can the father and son bridge their differences, or will their conflicting visions chart separate courses for their lives? The story unfolds with quiet drama, social undercurrents, and a slowly shifting sense of what family means when wealth, respect, and love intersect. Also echoing through the town is a guest appearance by Raja Bahadur (Sanjeev Kumar), a reminder of the larger power structures at play beyond the family’s walls.
