After betraying his social class, denying his peasant roots and fleeing his native village, Ahmed has become a successful businessman and has found a place in the sun among the bourgeoisie. Azem, his childhood friend, has followed a quite different way. refusing the rat race, he has remained close to people of humble origin. Politically committed, he aspires to be useful to his country and more particularly to the forsaken rural world. The two former friends meet again. Due to the influence of Azem, Ahmed gradually becomes aware that his life is a failure.

Rıfkı, who lives in Germany, returns to his village, which he left years ago, to sell the properties inherited from his late father. A few coincidences that occur upon his arrival in the village lead to his name being associated with the 'Saint' title.

The story of Cevher and his family and their daily struggles as seasonal workers in the cotton fields of Southern Turkey. Cevher depends on the family earnings from the fields to pay blood money for a murder one of his relatives committed. On the cotton fields, people also have to compete with machines, which are preferred to human workers. Eventually, the workers unite and go on strike.