Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam 1962

In Calcutta, a group of laborers is demolishing the ruins of an old haveli. During lunch breaks, the overseer paces the site, and as he sits, a vivid flashback to the late 19th century unfolds.

The story centers on the educated, lower-class artist-turned-worker, Bhoothnath Chakraborty, who arrives in colonial Calcutta in search of work. He moves in with his brother-in-law and stays at the haveli of the influential Choudhury zamindar family. There, Subinay, a devout member of the Brahmo Samaj and owner of the Mohini Sindoor factory, becomes a guiding figure in Bhoothnath’s life. Subinay’s daughter, Jaba, overhears their exchange and is amused by Bhoothnath’s rustic charm, which starkly contrasts with the haveli’s refined excess. Yet curiosity blossoms into a quiet attraction as Bhoothnath increasingly observes the ritzy, decadent routines that define the family’s nightly life.

One night, a servant named Bansi introduces Bhoothnath to the younger zamindar’s wife, Chhoti Bahu. She pleads for Mohini sindoor, convinced it can heal the rift with her husband, Chhote Babu, who spends much of his time with a dancing girl. Moved by her sorrow, Bhoothnath becomes her confidant, and as their bond deepens, she leans on him, sometimes sharing drinks to keep him close.

Meanwhile, Subinay falls ill and shuts the factory, unable to manage it. He also arranges Jabba’s engagement to Supavitra, another Brahmo Samaj member. Learning of this, Bhoothnath’s heart breaks, and he decides to leave. He eventually takes up an apprenticeship as a trainee architect and is assigned to a project in another town.

Months pass, and Bhoothnath returns to check on Subinay’s health, only to learn that Subinay has died. With Subinay gone, Jabba ends her engagement to Supavitra. Bhoothnath discovers that he and Jabba were betrothed as children, a revelation that adds a new layer to their evolving connection.

When Bhoothnath visits the haveli again, he finds it partly ruined and the Choudhurys in dire straits. Chhoti Bahu is now a desperate alcoholic, and her husband is paralysed. He chastises her for her drinking, and their argument is overheard by the elder zamindar, Majhle Babu, who suspects an affair between Chhoti Bahu and Bhoothnath.

One fateful night, Chhoti Bahu asks Bhoothnath to accompany her to a shrine to pray for her husband. Majhle Babu orders his henchmen to pursue them. The chase ends with Bhoothnath being knocked unconscious and Chhoti Bahu abducted. He awakens in a hospital to learn that Chhoti Bahu has disappeared and her husband is dead.

The flashback ends. Bhoothnath’s workers reveal that a skeleton has been found among the haveli’s ruins; the jewelry on the corpse convinces him that it is Chhoti Bahu. In the film’s closing image, a nostalgic Bhoothnath rides away in a carriage with Jaba, who has become his wife, leaving behind the ruins and the memories that bound their fates.