Anwar is from a middle-class
Muslim family in
Lucknow, India, living with his mother and sister Suraiya. Anwar is researching ancient
Hindu temples. The family rents out a room to a poor widow and her daughter, Mehru, whom Anwar falls in love with. Anwar is certain of Mehru's love for him, but Mehru has her heart set on settling in America. She is tired of the
dust, the summer heat, and the struggles and tragedy of her poverty-stricken country. Anwar tells Mehru it is not possible for him to take her to the U.S. Even if he works all day, it is impossible and out of his financial reach. Mehru expresses her interest in Udit, an engineer who has plans to settle in America. Mehru begins a relationship with Udit, which one day is revealed to Anwar. Anwar visits Udit, who tells him of his plan to marry Mehru before going to the US as his visa is ready. Anwar tells him that he should think once again before doing this because of the difference in their religion, as Mehru is a
Muslim and Udit is a follower of
Hinduism. If Mehru's strict and conservative family members come to know about this, they will shatter the dreams of Mehru and Udit, and their lives will not be spared. Seeing that Udit has ignored his warning, Anwar confesses his feelings to Mehru when they meet on the terrace, and he begs her not to leave him. He cannot imagine his life without her, but Mehru says that she never loved Anwar. Mehru runs away with Udit. Later, seeing Mehru's mother cry her heart out for her daughter, Anwar impulsively tells her and the family that she has run away with a Hindu man. Mehru's uncle, along with 2 other men, finds the two youngsters, shoots Udit, and brings the injured Mehru back home. Mehru commits suicide at the tragedy of Udit's death. A guilt-ridden Anwar takes shelter in an ancient Hindu temple in
Dholpur, carrying a bag containing drawings of
mandirs and notes on
Krishna,
Mirabai, and Mehru. This bag ends up with the police, who come to the conclusion that Anwar is a terrorist who is planning to detonate bombs in sacred Hindu temples. The temple is surrounded by the police, politicians who are anxious to win the Hindu vote, the media, and a huge crowd drawn by the spectacle. Set against the post-9/11 scenario, amidst the craze for
Valentine's Day,
Britney Spears,
Osama bin Laden,
George W. Bush, and the
American way of life, Anwar must now examine his options. In the end, Anwar
is fatally shot by the cops, and while dying, he has a vision of himself as Krishna and Mehru as Meera, reuniting with each other. == Cast ==