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Synopsis
Mela is the story of a man’s eternal fight against injustice perpetrated on him by Society – but there have been always two types of people – those who take law into their own hands to avenge their sufferings and the other who choose the right means to fight for their rights – Shakti Singh and Kishan Singh are the symbols of these two divergent forces.

Shakti Singh, ignoring his mother’s warning while leaving for school, forcibly takes his younger brother Kishan to the Mela. They are caught in a cyclone and separated. The mother who goes in search of her children gets trapped under a tree. Kishan is rescued by a Seva Dal volunteer, but he is in an unconscious condition and taken to the city hospital. He loses his memory and before his identity could be established he escapes from the hospital and accidentally comes under the care of a widowed Muslim lady and is brought up by her.

Thus the orphaned brothers grow up in two different worlds – Shakti, in his village under his unscrupulous uncle, a drunkard who tortures him at every stage - and Kishan, under the loving care of his foster-mother who grows up in the city as an enlightened man.

Shakti Singh’s uncle in league with the village Panchayat not only succeeds in grabbing Shakti’s land but also makes him flee the village after being framed for a murder which was committed by his uncle. Thus Shakti Singh turns into an outlaw. In his absence, his beloved Santo is raped by the village sarpanch and she commits suicide. Shakti swears vengeance and threatens that none but his lost brother could till his fields and those who dare to do so shall face dire consequences.

At this stage, destiny plays its unpredictable part. Kishan Singh purchases the land from his uncle without knowing what is in store for him and settles down in the village. Lajjo, his beloved, pleads with him not to take the suicidal step of ploughing the fields, but he assures her that he will convert any decoit into a law abiding citizen through love and kindness. In a tense and dramatic moment both the brothers face each other – Love and logic fall into place and in the consequent confrontation, the elder brother shoots the younger brother – but nature intervenes in saving the deserving. The police arrive at the nick of time – while Kishan gets one bullet in the shoulder, Shakti gets two in his back and is compelled to escape for life, unless he wants to get caught.

Kishan and Lajjo’s romance blossoms into real love as the crop in Kishan’s fields grow ripe for the harvest, while Shakti helplessly awaits his recovery. The love affair between Kishan and Lajjo is whipped up into a scandal – the village panchayat plays villian and declares Kishan as a Muslim since he was brought up by a Muslim mother and thus tries to drive a wedge between the eternal relationship between mother and son. Kishan is faced with the dilemma of choosing between his beloved and his mother – he sacrifices his love at the altar for his mother.

The dreaded climax comes close when Lajjo’s marriage is fixed with another boy, Shakti who is out for vengeance. He sets fire to the ripe crop and while Kishan rushes to save it, Shakti sets the house on fire trapping Kishan’s mother inside. Kishan rushes to rescue his mother and Shakti kidnaps Lajjo from the mandap. Kishan rescues his mother and goes after Shakti Singh. In the terrific climax the brothers fight like beasts for each other’s blood – Shakti is stabbed by Kishan and before dying the relationship comes to light culminating a highly emotional note – vindicating the saying “Crime doesn’t pay”.