Velu, an eleven year old boy, ran away from home. He kept wandering before getting on to a train to Chennai without a ticket. A porter shouted at Velu to get side; as Velu was getting lost in the crowd. He put his bundle down and sat on a bench not knowing where to go and what to do.
Velu had never seen so many people earlier, except once a year, at the fair. People kept walking by, bumping onto him. There was a lot of noise on the platform. A voice kept announcing something on the loudspeaker. Velu felt tired and exhausted. He hadn't eaten anything for two days except for some peanuts and jaggery. The first day after running from home, he had to walk the entire day. He had no money at all and therefore, he also had to travel without a ticket.
Velu Meets Jaya who Asked Him if He Had Run Away from Home
Just when Velu was feeling miserable, he heard a rough voice calling out. Velu opened his eyes and saw a girl standing next to him. She asked Velu if he was new to the town. The girl was wearing a long banian and was carrying a huge sack on her shoulders. She was stuffing the sack with dirty plastic cups that she was picking from the floor.
Jaya asks Velu if he had run away from home. Velu did not wish to tell a stranger his story. He does not tell Jaya that he had run away from home because he was tired getting beaten by his father and that his father snatched away all money that Velu and his sisters used to earn.
Jeya Helps Velu to Find Food
Jeya tells Velu that there were many children like Velu, who Have left their homes, are to be found in the town. Velu was feeling very hungry and his stomach was hurting due to starvation. Jaya tells Velu that he won't get food merely by sitting there. She offers him help in finding food. Though not sure, Velu begins to follow Jaya, for he didn't know what else to do. Both had to walk a great deal. She finally takes to a wedding function. Jaya, at that point, indicates towards a big garbage bin as their potential treat. She offers Velu a banana from the bin.
At first, Velu refuses to take the food from the bin. He sees two goats standing on the pile and a cloud of flies buzzing Around them. Yet, he then decides to take the food because he could not control his hunger any further. After eating a banana and vada from the bin, Velu feels his hunger satiated a bit.
Jaya Leaves for Work
Directing Velu, Jaya begins to leave for work. Velu panics; he didn't know where to go if Jaya would leave him alone. He decides to go along with Jaya. Jaya takes Velu to her house, where she dumps one sack and picks up an empty one to gather more trash. Jaya tells Velu that she was a ragpicker and if Velu wanted to make money, he could do the same job.
Velu did not know what ragpicking was nor could he understand why someone would buy the rubbish that Jaya was collecting. Nonetheless, he decides to follow Jaya and work with her till he found a better job to sustain himself.