Nude

Yamuna endures public humiliation as her husband spends money on another woman. The pressure of poverty and shame drives her to leave the village. She arrives in Mumbai to stay with her aunt.

Yamuna arrives in Mumbai and stays with her aunt Akke, who is also poor and shares a single room with her husband. They begin to navigate a more ordinary life together. Akke supports Yamuna through this transition.

Seeking work, Yamuna follows Akke to the Sir J. J. School of Art and learns that Akke works as a nude model for students. This revelation challenges Yamuna's views on dignity and work. She starts considering modelling as a possibility.

Akke explains that nude modelling has been her work for 15 to 20 years and frames it as a noble educational service. She asks Yamuna if she would like to try it. After hesitation, Yamuna agrees and they head to the college.

Yamuna begins modelling and earns a decent income for her family. She also takes on housekeeping jobs to supplement earnings. The work supports her family while she adjusts to her new life.

Although most students ignore her, there is at least one student who shows genuine care for Yamuna. The atmosphere at the college remains largely indifferent toward her. She continues her work to support her family.

Yamuna finds paintings in Lakshman's school bag, revealing his interest in the arts. To shield their secret and protect his future, Akke and Yamuna decide to send Lakshman to a relative in Aurangabad for higher education.

Lakshman vehemently protests the plan but is forced to leave Mumbai and continue his education in Aurangabad. He becomes bitter about the life of poverty and separation from his mother.

Life continues with Yamuna taking private assignments to fund Lakshman's education. To ensure her privacy and safety, one student from the college accompanies her when she poses away from the secure premises.

Renowned artist M. F. Husain arrives in Mumbai and Yamuna is invited to pose nude for him. The session becomes a focal point of controversy at the college. She contemplates the circumstances of her work in light of public scrutiny.

Within days, protests escalate into violence as opponents attack the college and destroy the nude paintings. Despite the fear, Yamuna is the first to resume modelling, continuing her work to support her family.

Akke suffers from joint pains and can no longer continue her work. When Lakshman returns home, he accuses Yamuna of prostitution and says he will abandon his studies to seek work in the Middle East.

The mounting strain destroys Yamuna's motivation and sense of hope. She feels crushed by poverty and judgment and ends her life in despair. Her death underscores the sacrifices she has made for her family.

Lakshman later learns of an exhibition of nude paintings at the college and visits it out of curiosity. He discovers a nude portrait of his mother and attacks the artist in a fit of rage.