Roti Kapda Aur Makaan

<p>After the retirement of his father ( ), it falls upon Bharat ( ) to look after his -based family. He has two younger college-going brothers, Vijay ( ) and Deepak ( ) and a sister of marriageable age, Champa (Meena T.). Although Bharat is a college graduate, the only work he can find is as a low-paid singer, much to the frustration of his girlfriend, Sheetal ( ). Meanwhile, Vijay has turned to crime as a last resort to provide for the family, but after an argument with Bharat, he leaves home to join the army. Sheetal starts working as a secretary for rich businessman Mohan Babu ( ) and Mohan becomes attracted to her. Sheetal loves Bharat but cannot contemplate a life in poverty. Bharat finally finds a job as a builder but starts to realise that Sheetal is slowly drifting away from him. Soon he loses his job after the government takes over the building site and his financial problems increase. When Mohan proposes marriage, Sheetal accepts, leaving Bharat heartbroken. Bharat loses his father soon after and is left devastated. He burns his on his father’s funeral pyre in frustration, . Meanwhile, Champa has found a suitor, but Bharat has no money to pay for the wedding. Depressed at the state of his life, Bharat soon finds salvation by helping Tulsi ( ) who lives in poverty. He also makes friends with Sardar Harnam Singh ( ) who comes to his rescue when he attempts to save Tulsi from a gang of hoodlums. He then receives an offer from a corrupt businessman named Nekiram ( ) who persuades Bharat to do his illegal activities so he and his family will come out of poverty, and he accepts. Deepak joins the police force. Bharat, who is working for Nekiram, decides to inform the police about his malpractices. Nekiram finds out and frames Bharat instead. Deepak is the police officer appointed for arresting Bharat. Vijay joins forces with Bharat to stop Nekiram. During this conflict Sheetal, who is regretting her mistake of choosing wealth over her love, sacrifices her life. Bharat, Vijay, Deepak, Mohan Babu and Sardar Harnam Singh get Nekiram and his troops jailed in the end. Bharat sees Sheetal in Tulsi and accepts her as his wife. The music was composed by the duo and lyrics by . Lyrics of “Mehngai Mar Gayi”, “Hay Hay Yeh Majboori” and “Panditji Mere Marne Ke” were written by . This film was a major commercial success, emerging as the highest grossing Indian film of 1974, and was declared an all time blockbuster. The film received three awards, as well as being nominated for eleven others.</p>