India before independence, a carpet factory in the countryside near Calcutta. For Ravi and Masha, who are forced to work as child laborers, it is the beginning of a tragic love story. Realizing that money determines whether one is free or enslaved, the ambitious and resolute Ravi works his way up from common worker to best carpet knotter, with just one goal - to leave the factory behind him.
Learning that the factory owner plans to keep Masha for himself, Ravi sacrifices all his savings to buy Masha's freedom. As she leaves, Masha promises to wait for him in Calcutta's biggest Shiva temple at every full moon. Years later, after having earned enough to buy his way out, Ravi becomes a carpet seller and rises to prosperity. Masha, who has become a sought-after dancer in a brothel, still goes to the temple hoping to find Ravi.
He also visits the holy site, but fate prevents them from finding each other. Although they marry others, whose affections they return, they keep their true love for one another. When they unexpectedly meet again, they enjoy a few moments of bliss before their love threatens to destroy them. Masha is willing to abandon everything for Ravi, but once again, the lovers are separated. Time passes, casting its shadows on the old and the new, the changing and the unchanging, the never-ending cycle of love...
