Dharam Karam 1975

Shankar, Premnath Malhotra is a hoodlum who lives in a crowded shanty with his pregnant wife, Kanta, and makes a living through crime. He prays to Lord Shiva that if he is blessed with a male child, the boy will grow up to be decent and honest. When Kanta gives birth to a son named Ranjit, Shankar clings to his vow even as danger looms: he robs another hoodlum, JK, for ill-gotten gains, drawing JK’s furious pursuit. In a desperate gambit, Shankar abducts his own child and swaps him with the infant of a renowned stage artist, Ashok Kumar, Raj Kapoor, hoping to sever the criminal line that plagues him. Tragically, Kanta dies soon after, and Shankar doubles down on his plan to shape Ashok’s son Dharam into a criminal like himself.

Dharam, raised under the shadow of his father’s ambition, is cared for by Bhim Singh, a wrestler, and Ganga, a midwife. Despite the harsh training, Dharam nourishes a different dream: to become a singer under Ashok, while Ranjit—Shankar’s switched son—slides into a life of crime, alcohol, and gambling under JK’s influence. The two brothers’ diverging paths set the stage for a clash of loyalties and bloodlines that will test the very idea of family.

After Shankar serves a long sentence, he returns to a world that has evolved beyond his design. He discovers his plan has backfired in the most painful way: Dharam’s talent, not his lineage, may shape the man he becomes, and the family rift widens. Shankar lashes out, beating Dharam and disciplining Ranjit to obey Ashok and follow in his footsteps, yet the truth he carries gnaws at him. JK and Ranjit eventually seize Shankar, forcing Dharam to carry out a deadly order: kill Ashok. Dharam cannot bring himself to pull the trigger. A violent confrontation follows, and Ranjit kills JK after learning that Shankar is his real father. In a desperate bid to protect his son, Shankar tries to save Dharam and frame him for the murder, but the truth emerges when Ashok is mortally wounded while attempting to shield Shankar from Ranjit’s gun.

In the final act, Shankar watches with a heavy heart as Ashok, Dharam, and Basanti, Rekha, take the stage for a triumphant show. The life they stage becomes a testament to resilience and art, even as Ranjit faces justice for his crimes.