In this melodrama about the perils of progress economic caste and religious divisions between the rurals are woven into the main story about the rivalry between Shankar (Dilip Kumar) and Krishna (Ajit) over the heroine Rajani (Vyjayanthimala). The dramatic high point sees everyone joining forces to build a road to prove (via a race between a bus and a horse-drawn carriage) that traditional technology is just as good as new machinery.