Nine-year-old Ali has the responsibility of collecting his six-year-old sister Zahra's pink shoes from the cobbler after they have been repaired. Unfortunately, while he is out buying potatoes, Ali inadvertently leaves the shoes concealed in a bag among some vegetables. A homeless man, mistaking it for trash, unknowingly takes the bag. In a panic, Ali believes the shoes have fallen behind the crates and, in his haste to search, ends up knocking over the display, prompting the grocer to chase him away.
Ali's family is struggling financially in a poverty-stricken neighborhood in South Tehran, which makes him reluctant to confess to his parents about losing Zahra's shoes. To add to their woes, the landlord confronts Ali's mother about her five months of unpaid rent, and the grocer is also overdue for payment. Despite the heavy burden, Ali confides in Zahra about the missing shoes and pleads with her to keep it a secret from their mother, which she agrees to honor. Later that evening, Ali faces his father's reprimand for not assisting his sick mother. While studying, the siblings exchange notes on how to tackle their pressing issue, and they come up with a clever plan: to take turns wearing Ali's Converse sneakers – Zahra will wear them for her morning classes, then return them to Ali for his afternoon ones.
Ali's hard work pays off when he scores highly on a test, prompting his teacher to reward him with a gold-colored pen that he gives to Zahra in an attempt to make up for her lost shoes. However, this plan backfires as it causes Ali to be late multiple times, each resulting in stern repercussions: the principal overlooks him the first time, warns him the second, and finally orders him to come back with his father the third time. Luckily, his teacher, noticing his distress, advocates on his behalf to the principal, persuading her to grant him one last opportunity due to his excellent performance.
One day, Zahra spots her pink shoes adorning another student's feet, Roya. After class, she stealthily follows Roya home, but when she and Ali confront her, they discover Roya’s father is blind and retreat without acting further. When Roya begins to excel in her studies, her father buys her brand new violet shoes, discarding Zahra's pink ones in the process. Distressed, Zahra learns about this unfortunate event from a new friend.
Ali's father, desperate for extra income, borrows gardening tools and takes Ali to the affluent suburbs of North Tehran in search of work. After numerous unsuccessful attempts, they stumble across a wealthy home where Ali's father manages to secure some work, and Ali strikes up a friendship with a six-year-old boy named Alireza. While Ali enjoys playing with him, his father is pleasantly surprised by the generosity of Alireza's grandfather. As they head home, Ali makes a passing remark about purchasing new shoes for Zahra, and his father responds positively about such an idea. However, their happiness quickly fades when a mishap with their bicycle results in an accident, injuring his father.
In a twist of fate, Ali discovers a prestigious children's 4-kilometer race involving multiple schools, with the third-place prize being a week at a vacation camp along with a new pair of sneakers. Ali sees this as an opportunity to win Zahra a new pair of shoes. To his profound disappointment, after a fiercely competitive race, he inadvertently claims the first spot. Returning home, he finds Zahra waiting eagerly. But just as he is about to express his feelings about the race outcome, their mother calls for Zahra. In a poignant moment, a quick cut shows the bicycle of Ali's father as he rides home, showcasing a pair of white and a pair of pink shoes among his goods. Ultimately, the film closes on a somber note, depicting Ali, distraught and with his sneakers torn from the race, submerging his blistered bare feet into a pool of water.
Some adaptations may include an epilogue revealing that Ali eventually blossoms into a successful racing athlete.
