Masaan

Devi Pathak is filmed in a compromising moment with her student Piyush after hotel staff tip off the police. Inspector Mishra uses the footage to threaten her with abetting a suicide unless a hefty bribe is paid. The incident triggers a dangerous spiral of coercion, fear, and social stigma that shadows Devi's life in Varanasi.

Mishra escalates the extortion by demanding an increasing bribe and threatening Devi with deeper trouble. Devi's father, Vidyadhar Pathak, a modest bookshop owner and Sanskrit professor, is drawn into the corrupt scheme. The family stakes rise as the bribe grows and the danger tightens around them.

As gossip and harassment mount, Devi's life unravels as she hops between coaching centers in search of work and dignity. The constant judgment compounds the pressure from Mishra and society alike. Her plans to leave Varanasi for Allahabad University grow ever more urgent.

Vidyadhar slips deeper into Mishra's coercive web as the bribe escalates, risking his family's safety and financial ruin. He borrows and bets, trying to secure Devi's future while fighting the looming debt. The intersection of fear, pride, and obligation pulls the two families closer to a breaking point.

A temporary government job with Indian Railways offers Devi some breathing room amid the pressure and stigma. The position gives her a possible escape route, but her plan remains to pay off the bribe and leave Varanasi for Allahabad University. The job marks a rare fragment of stability in an unsettled life.

Deepak Kumar, a Dom cremation worker and diligent civil engineering student, falls for Shaalu Gupta, a high-caste girl who challenges tradition. Their bond grows as they navigate caste boundaries, ambition, and the prospect of a future beyond their origins. Their relationship becomes a beacon of hope amid the city’s pressures.

A memorable journey to Allahabad along the riverbanks reinforces Deepak and Shaalu's connection. The river and its surroundings symbolize possibilities beyond caste and duty. In that moment, their hopes feel within reach despite looming family and social expectations.

Shaalu dies in a bus accident during a pilgrimage trip, and her body is brought to the cremation grounds where Deepak's family works. Deepak is devastated by grief but remains determined to pursue a steadier future. The tragedy becomes a turning point that anchors his resolve for a better life with dignity.

Despite the heartbreak, Deepak is eventually hired by Indian Railways as an engineer in Allahabad, offering him a more stable path forward. The job promises a break from the hereditary toil of his Dom family and opens new possibilities in his life and for his family. His personal tragedy remains, but his prospects widen.

Vidyadhar bets Rs 10,000 on Jhonta, a young helper from the shop, in a diving contest meant to bring a fortune. Jhonta drowns, and Vidyadhar, moved by the boy's plight, vows to save him from danger, only to become entangled in Mishra's coercion and the debt thereafter. The loss tightens the web of obligation around him.

Jhonta regains consciousness and reveals Shaalu's ring—the item Deepak had tossed into the Ganga in a moment of grief. Vidyadhar uses the ring to settle a score with Mishra, turning personal loss into leverage against the inspector. The ring becomes a symbol linking two worlds and their fates.

Devi visits Piyush's family, where anger and rejection from his father underscore the social scorn she endures as a woman who slept with a younger man. The visit exposes the human cost of judgment and the fragile sense of belonging. The scene broadens the sense of community pressure in the city.

Devi makes her way to the Ganges to immerse the gift Piyush had given her on that fateful day, a symbolic act that braids the two families and their fates. The river becomes a place of release and reflection amid the ongoing struggle. The gesture signals a desire to move forward despite judgment.

At the river's edge, Deepak appears with water, and a boatman offers a path forward. The two strangers share a quiet moment on a boat bound for Sangam, hinting at a possible future built on mutual understanding rather than fear. The film leaves the two stories moving toward a tentative reconciliation.