Lal Singh (Amitabh Bachchan) lives with his mother (Nirupa Roy) in a small basti in Bombay, grows up with the poor and needy. He is called Lal Badshah by the people he lives among. Lal is a very helping person and dead set against crime. In the same city lives Vikram Singh alias Vicky Baadshah (Raghuvaran) who is the Don of the city always clashing with Lal Baadshah. Vicky is the son of Dayal Singh (Amrish Puri) who lives far away from Mumbai in a castle. Vicky & his brother Ajit Singh (Mukesh Rishi), a corrupt police officer want to rule the city. Meanwhile, Lal meets Kiran (Manisha Koirala), an L.I.C. agent who falls in love with him & is determined to become his wife. At the castle, Dayal Singh is still hunting for the treasures of the Maharaja, whom he murdered years ago along with his brother Sultan Singh (Prem Chopra). When the Maharaja was murdered, his son, Dewan Ranbir Singh (also Amitabh Bachchan) hid the treasure, for which Dayal Singh tried to murder him. What is the link between Ranbir Singh and his look-alike Lal Singh and will Dayal Singh be able to ever find the treasure?
