Sent to Boarding School at a very young age, Mala returns home to Delhi after 10 years to find that everything has changed. Her widowed mom has re-married wealthy Khemchand, and all of the family, which consists of sister, Shashi; brother, Deep, and a younger brother, Munna, live in a palatial house. Khemchand does business illicitly as an insurance broker, when the government decides to nationalize insurance companies, he is arrested and sentenced to 7 years in jail. His entire family is thrown out on the street, where they are taken care of by Vijay, a poor stage artist, who has fallen in love with Mala, who also has a place in her heart for him. But circumstances keep the two lovers apart, so much so that Mala is forced to refuse Vijay`s help, re-locates further away from him, and joins a dance troupe.