Prakash, Rajesh Khanna, is the son of a wealthy but demanding father, K.N. Singh who goes by Gobindram. Gobindram dares his son to prove his talent by earning a one-time meal from his art, not by relying on family wealth. Prakash leaves home to pursue painting, trying to sell his canvases, yet his early efforts meet with disappointment. A glamorous turn arrives when Princess Kamini, a seductive playgirl brought to life by the screen’s glitter, Helen, introduces him to the dazzling world of glamour. Under her influence, Prakash shifts his painting style to suit modern tastes, but despite the surface glitter, his core remains kind and generous.
Jyoti Verma, Tanuja Samarth, arrives in Bombay from London as an eye doctor with a steady sense of purpose. Prakash, though a gifted painter, slides into the life of a charming playboy, and the pair quickly fall in love. Their romance faces trouble when Prakash’s past and the temptations of Kamini threaten to pull them apart. Kamini stalks Prakash, and one night she appears at his house drunk and flirting. When Jyoti discovers the scene, she storms out, hurt and angry. Prakash’s rebuke of Kamini only deepens Jyoti’s wounds, yet she eventually forgives him after he stages a dramatic suicide ruse and she learns the truth about Kamini. Over time, Prakash wins her back with a sincere proposal to marry.
Jyoti’s father, Nazir Hussain as Lalaji, visits Prakash with a bribe, condemning his paintings that celebrate the female form. Yet, when he witnesses Prakash’s altruism and the goodness at the artist’s core, Lalaji changes his mind, apologizes, and the couple’s wedding plans begin to take shape.
A fateful car accident changes everything. Kamini discovers Prakash and takes him to her palace, where she imprisons him. Jyoti receives a telegram announcing Prakash’s death, leaving her and Lalaji to mourn. When the bandages are removed, Prakash learns he is blind. Kamini, in her cruelty, humiliates and threatens him, even as Jyoti is wooed by Captain Vinod, Sujit Kumar, who showers her with gifts and echoing declarations. His presence reminds Jyoti of Prakash, and the memory fuels her conflicted feelings.
To win Jyoti, Kamini launches a dangerous gambit, taking Prakash on a dangerous ride that ends with him escaping and Kamini tragically falling from a mountainside, dying in a dramatic turn of fate. Prakash is found and eventually brought to the family home of Captain Vinod, where Vinod’s parents, including Captain Vinod’s father Utpal Dutt and Captain Vinod’s mother Sulochana Latkar, have been caring for him in his absence. They learn that Prakash’s own father has died a month earlier, leaving behind a house and a new, perhaps more humane environment for Prakash to recover.
Vinod rushes to the hospital and speaks with Jyoti, urging her to visit the new home where Prakash is staying. She goes, but the pressure from Vinod’s family to accept a marriage with Vinod drives her away, and she heads home where her father suffers a heart attack. Yet Lalaji’s love for his daughter endures, and the two decide that Jyoti should marry Captain Vinod, and the engagement party ensues. Prakash, in attendance, is asked to sing, and Jyoti watches from afar, tears welling as she witnesses his voice still carrying the warmth she loves.
In a pivotal turn, Vinod informs Jyoti that a friend will be sent to her eye hospital. Prakash and Jyoti begin to reconcile, and a long-awaited eye surgery is performed by Jyoti herself, who uses her skills to help him regain sight. While Prakash recuperates, Captain Vinod overhears a private exchange where Prakash confesses that his love for Jyoti should not be defined by his blindness, and he wishes to love her as a normal man. This revelation torments both men: Vinod over losing the race for love, and Prakash over risking Vinod’s happiness by staying in the picture.
Prakash vows to step away, but Vinod’s protective instinct erupts, and he assaults Prakash. Jyoti arrives and witnesses the confrontation. A struggle erupts, and just as Vinod is poised to kill Prakash, the elder generation intervenes: his father shoots Vinod in the leg, stopping the violence. In the aftermath, Prakash and Jyoti finalize their bond and marry, choosing a life built on honesty, resilience, and the capacity to care for others even in the face of profound trials.
