The film begins with a protest under the strong leadership of trade unionist Anand Babu to enhance the struggling lives of laborers. Anand Babu lives with his wife, Shantamma, and two sons, Vijay & Ravi. The factory management takes a stab at bribing him but in vain. So, via the threat of keeping his family at risk, they bind him. Upon which, furious, the laborer batters, declaring him a traitor, resulting in him becoming a wanderer. Shantamma also departs the town with children, where she strives hard to civilize Ravi, and Vijay aids her. Parallelly, Vijay turns into an atheist who never accesses the temple, only accompanies his mother and sits on its steps.
Years roll by, and Vijay works in the harbor as Coolie No. 786, where his colleague Rahim proclaims him never to leave his badge as it is amulet by them. Besides, Ravi is a worthy move to police training. Meanwhile, Vijay rises against the gangster Bhujangam, who suppresses the hired hand at the harbor. Discerning Vijay's caliber, Rambabu, the antagonist of Bhujangam, appoints him as a white knight who triumphs over several fatal tasks, and every time, his badge 786 shields him. Time passes, and Vijay becomes a white gangster who endears a dancer, Anita. Ravi backs as a police officer, conscious of his brother, and requests him to give up, which he denies. Thus, Ravi quits along with his mother.
After a while, Ravi detects Anand Babu's dead body as a stranger, which makes Shantamma terminally ill. By this time, Ravi surrounds Vijay, so he bows his head before the lord visits the temple. The next day, Shantamma recouped and was delightfully aware of it. Later, Vijay identifies Anita as pregnant when he affirms to knit her and resigns from his profession by surrendering. As of now, Vijay wants to confess his mother's forgiveness and inform her he is arriving at the temple as a reformer. However, Anita is slaughtered by Bhujangam when Vijay has an outburst and ceases him. Following, Ravi chases him, but with the trust on his badge, Vijay absconds. Unfortunately, it slips, and he becomes a victim of Ravi's bullet. At last, Vijay lands at the temple, leaving his breath on his mother's lap. Finally, the movie ends with Govt felicitates Ravi for his honesty.
