The film starts out in black and white, before independence, just as young Bharat (Manoj Kumar) is about to be born. Bharat's father is wanted by the English and Harnam (Pran), his brother sells him out for a cash. Bharat's mother (Kamini Kaushal) is left a widow, Harnam leaves with his blood money and his son (Prem Chopra), Harnam's wife (Nirupa Roy) is left a virtual widow, and Guru-ji (Ashok Kumar), the head of the family, swears that he will not make a pilgramage until Harnam returns with the grandson.
The film then switches to the present day, where Bharat is about to leave for college. He's attending university in Oxford but he makes it very clear to us that he is only going to get a scientific education and will then bring that knowledge back to the country; it's an education, not a brain drain. Bharat's meek cousin Gopi (Bharti) - who is in love with Bharat - is introduced. She will wait for his return. Away from Gopi in the UK, Bharat stays with an old friend of his father's who went to the UK to study and never returned. He has two children, a son named Orphan - who changes his name, his clothes, and would even change his parents if he could - and a daughter - the hip, very modern Preeti (Saira Banu). Both children drift through life from party to party drinking and smoking what they can along the way. Preeti, in particular, is both baffled and intrigued by Bharat. He is constantly throwing off phrases and words he assumes she knows only to be questioned. Whether he is praising Amritsar - "What sar?" or reading the Bhagavad Gita - "Who is Geeta? Is that the heroine of the novel?" Amongst Preeti's acquaintance is an NRI who is dating a blond English woman (Barbara Lindley). Well, Bharat gets right to the truth and learns that the NRI has left a wife and child back in India. His father-in-law (Om Prakash) has come to beg him to return. When that doesn't work, Bharat and Om Prakash try to talk sense into his blond girlfriend and the NRI realizes that he should return to his family. In a strange turn of events, Orphan joins up with a group of Western Hare Krishnas and the Western-born Indian reconnects with his heritage through Westerners consuming a Westernized form of Eastern religion. Meanwhile, Harman and his son OP (Prem Chopra) have come back into contact with Bharat and his foster family. OP becomes infatuated with Preeti and attempts to rape her. OP also tries to start trouble with Bharat, but Orphan and his new Hare Krishna friends stop him. Now, Orphan and the NRI have returned to their Indian roots, but Preeti hasn't bought into Bharat's world yet. She does love him, though, and he has fallen in love with her, too, somewhere along the line. He is charmed by her straightforwardness and willingness to see and question and to be seen and questioned - something that traditional Gopi is lacking. Preeti agrees to travel to India with Bharat to meet his family but only if they can return to the UK afterwards. Bharat promises to go where Preeti does. Predictably, she has an awakening of sorts and agrees to stay, although she never renounces her miniskirt. The film finishes by tieing up the loose ends of the Harman storyline. He repents his materialistic ways; money hasn't made his life happier and it turned his son into a jerk. OP tries to rape Preeti one more time but Guru-ji saves her only to be severely beaten by OP. Finally, Harman denounces his son and his former materialistic ways and Preeti and Bharat marry and remain in India.
Link(s) for Phoonk (2008) Hindi Movie
