A film based on the Kazakh epic poem of the XIII-XIV century. The film tells about the founders of Sarybay and Karabay, who, due to circumstances, violate the oath given to each other to seal their blood-tied friendship. However, their children Kozy Korpesh and Bayan Sulu develop mutual feelings.

The film is about the heroic struggle of the Kazakh people against the hordes of bloodthirsty Dzungars and the victory over the Dzungars (XVIII century).

The first years of Soviet power. The rich Aktanbai decides to steal his flocks abroad. However, only the shepherd Malbagar knows the secret paths in the mountains. Therefore, Aktanbai, giving the orphan girl Nurzhamal to Malbagar as a wife, demands to indicate the way through the mountains for this. On the way to the border, Malbagar, heeding the requests of Nurzhamal, who did not want to be his wife, helps the girl escape from the camp of Aktanbai. Years pass. Nurzhamal, after graduating from medical school, returns to his native village...

Zhaukhaz leaves her father's house, as custom dictates and her stepmother wishes. Zhaukhaz does not love her future husband, but she does not dare to break the old custom. Zhaukhaz, along with her husband and his parents, lives in a remote high-altitude pasture. The entire family tends a flock of collective farm sheep. The daily life of the shepherd's family is harsh, and the work is monotonous: cleaning the kennels, feeding the sheep, and, on sunny and quiet days, taking them out for grazing. The winter house is surrounded by silence. Sometimes it seems scary. On one of those days, when she fell in love with a young machine operator from Tanabay's neighboring brigade, Zhauhaz realized how vast life was and how fragile the bonds of old customs that tied her to an unloved man were.

When the herdsman's son was born, the Great Ruler of the underworld, Erlik Khan, predicted to the newborn that he, having reached the age of seventeen, would be sacrificed to atone for human pride. But Mohammed — that's what his father called him — grew up kind and brave. The young man managed to force the Lord of Darkness to change his destiny.

A herdsman leaves his flock for the city, dreaming of becoming a cosmonaut, but he is rejected. Working a small job in a film studio, he is singled out for his looks and becomes a stand-in for a star actor.

The clash of two styles of approaches to people, science, and business is the main conflict of the film. Both central characters - the head of the Altai complex space station and the experiment leader Andrei - are people devoted to science. But Altai is an emotional person, he manages to take care of people, forgive them their small shortcomings and mistakes. Andrey is dry, sometimes even rude to his employees. His absorption in work sometimes borders on selfishness. This gives rise to a clash with Touma, a gifted physicist, but a man of a different plane.

The director and choreographer from Prague are preparing a show performance "Oriental Fairy Tale" - a ballet on ice with the participation of vocal and instrumental ensembles and pop singers. They are shooting their picture in Kazakhstan at the Medeo high-altitude skating rink.

The screen adaptation of the novel "Abai" by Mukhtar Auezov recreates the story of prominent Kazakh poet and philosopher Abay Kunanbayev. The famous Kazakh poet became friends with the Russian exile, scientist Nifont Dolgopolov. Under the influence of their growing friendship, Abai formed some of his academic ideas and principles.