Gian Singh & Avtar Singh are officers with the Indian Army serving under the command of Andrew Stilwell who lives with his sister Margaret in Delhi. During 1941 the trio are dispatched to active duty in Burma where Andrew is killed. Both Gian and Avtar return to their village in Sarsa Punjab where Gian lives with his widowed mom Shanti. During 1947 after 350 years of occupying India the British decide to leave but not before separating Islamic Pakistan and secular India. Millions of Muslims crossed from India to Pakistan while an equal number of Hindus Sikhs and Christians crossed over from the other side. A group of Muslims who were crossing over to Pakistan are attacked by a mob of sword wielding horse-riding Sikhs and Hindus including Avtar many are slaughtered but some do manage to escape.