Based on the novel by Bhisham Sahni, Tamas is an epic drama set against the backdrop of riot-stricken North India on the eve of Partition in 1947. Nathu, an outcast, is hired to kill a pig, whose carcass he’s later appalled to find in front of the mosque. A riot follows and, ridden with guilt, Nathu takes his ailing mother and pregnant wife and leaves town.

Mrs. Iyer and her infant son are traveling to Kolkata with the help of photographer Rajah. When religious tensions flare up and the bus travelers become stranded under martial law, she makes a choice to save him that entwines their lives.

An old couple, Mohan Joshi and his wife, sues their landlord for not maintaining their 'collapsing' apartment building. For this, they hire two cunning lawyers. The court case drags on for years and the lawyers milk the old couple dry, while they become rich. Back home in the society, the old couple is ridiculed for fighting the landlord, but they fight on nevertheless.