Two young women from a remote Nepal village, full of happy hopes and dreams, are kidnapped and trafficked to work as sex slaves in Sonagachi, Kolkata's notorious red-light district. One of them, Chameli, tells her story. Chameli's younger brother sets off on a quixotic rescue mission only to find himself fighting to survive on the city's streets. Meanwhile, an Australian student arrives in Kolkata with idealistic intent, determined to help young sex slaves if she can. Can there be a rare happy and life-affirming ending to this story of the world's most inhumane trade?