Set in the turbulent 1930s, this is the story of a poor Chinese hawker selling his merchandise, Chinese silk, in the streets of Calcutta. This was the time when China was repulsing a brutal attack of militarist Japan and when an outraged Rabindranath Tagore wrote to his friend in Japan, the great poet Noguchi: “I wish your countrymen, whom I love so much, not success but remorse”. This film holds the dubious distinction of being the first to be banned (though temporarily) in independent India.
Entering an apartment block in search of a drink of water, a naive peasant finds himself mistaken for a thief and is chased by the residents. Whilst evading capture, he inadvertently exposes the venality and dishonesty of the building's middle class occupants.
Gautam, a rich young man, goes to Assam to visit his father's tea plantation. The plane in which he's travelling is forced to make an emergency landing due to bad weather. Gautam gets hurt and suffers from amnesia. He falls in love with a young woman Kanchan, who responds to him even though she is part of a religious community that doesn't allow its members to marry.
Saamri, an evil magician, causes trouble in the lives of Prince Jalal and his princess. As the situation worsens, the prince sets out to destroy the magician.