Set against the backdrop of the political violence that rocked India, and West Bengal in particular, in the late 1960s, it tells the story of an aged widow in a village who goes to Calcutta to stay with relatives, but faces only exploitation. She moves to a slum, and finds her "own people" in a group of educated, unemployed youth, who are caught up inexorably in the prevalent violence.
Apu, que ha logrado trágicamente su ansiada independencia, siente reforzada su ansia de conocimiento. Sus deseos de escribir, soñar y amar parecen cumplirse cuando conoce a Aparna y se casa con ella. Tercera y última parte de la "trilogía de Apu".
