Trama

The story of Paan Singh Tomar, an Indian athlete and seven-time national steeplechase champion who becomes one of the most feared dacoits in Chambal Valley after his retirement.

Paan Singh Tomar is a Hindi-language film, based on the true story of a runner employed by the Army and has won Gold medal at Indian National Games but forced to become notorious baaghi. It is directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia.—Anonymous

A reporter (Brijendra Kala) interviews Paan Singh Tomar (Irrfan Khan), a robber who is in the news for killing 9 people of a community. To gain access to Paan, the journalist had to surrender his niece as surety to Paan's men. Paan is addressed as Subedaar by everyone, as a sign of respect.

Answering questions about himself, the story goes in a flashback in year 1950. Paan Singh works in the Army while his wife Indra (Mahie Gill) and mother live in Morena, Chambal district. Paan loves his wife very much but has to return to his unit to perform his duties as a soldier. He receives news that his wife has given birth to a baby girl.

He surprises his senior Major Masand (Vipin Sharma) in the Army with his athletic skills. He is punished to make 10 rounds of the ground for reporting late, and he actually ends up enjoying the run and completes it in double quick time. He is admonished for having a large appetite and is told that every soldier has a fixed food ration. Though he was not interested in sports, he joins the sports division because there were no limits on their diet.

Paan is also trained to operate firearms, such as rifles during his basic training and proves himself to be an expert marksman. Paan says exactly what is on his mind. He tells the CO of the base that his uncle was a rebel, but never caught as he was too fast for the police. He says that in the country, everyone except the army are crooks, which is why he joined the army. He also adds that many officers in the army are utterly useless. Masand sends Paan to Army Physical Training Center.

Picked for the 5000 meters race's training, he was persuaded to run for the 3000-meter steeplechase by his coach HS Randhawa (Rajendra Gupta). This was because the coach's daughter was married to the current 5000-meter champion & the coach was afraid that Paan Singh will defeat him & the champion will take it out on the coach's daughter. Paan Singh obliges by accepting coach's request.

Paan Singh participates in the Indian National Games and wins the gold medal in the steeplechase event 7 years in a row. In 1958 he participates in the Asian Games at Tokyo but couldn't win because of his inability to adjust with the track spikes only given to him in the final event. He felt frustrated when he was not allowed to go the borders to fight in the 1962 and 1965 wars because sportsmen were not allowed to fight in them. In 1967, he participated in the International Military Games and wins the gold medal in the steeplechase.

His elder brother Matadeen (Imran Hasnee) from his native place visits him and talks about an illegal land acquisition of his ancestral property by Bhanwar Singh (Jahangir Khan), his relative. Paan Singh retires from the Army to settle his family disputes, despite being offered a position as the coach in the army. On arriving home, he tries to resolve the issue with Bhanwar Singh. He seeks help from the District Collector and local police station, but no help is provided. His son Hanumant (Swapnil Kotriwar) gets beaten badly by Bhanwar Singh and his goons. Paan Singh then orders his son to rejoin army and stay away from the dispute.

Bhanwar Singh and his goons try to kill Paan Singh and family, when Paan Singh is at the police station, trying to get the police to take action against Bhanwar for beating up his son. His family manages to escape but his mother gets killed brutally.

Paan Singh decides to avenge his mother's death. He becomes a Baaghi (Robber) who wreaks havoc in the Chambal Valley. He forms a gang and continues to add new members. He starts kidnapping people for financial support & builds his forces & arms. He uses police uniforms and police vehicles to escape scrutiny across 3 states MP, UP & Rajasthan. He soon becomes notorious in the Chambal Valley area.

Pann Singh then went into the business of extorting and kidnapping wealthy businessmen in the area to accumulate money and an arsenal for his people so that they could become a proper gang. After making all the necessary arrangements for arms and ammunition for gang members, he arranged a major attack on Bhanwar Singh, who had police protection. Bhanwar Singh was then killed by Paan Singh Tomar after a brief chase.

One day, Paan Singh and his gang stay in a village. The village Sarpanch appears to be Paan Singh's friend but informs police about Paan Singh's gang behind his back. The police attack the compound where Paan Singh is staying. Paan Singh manages to escape, but his elder brother is killed. To avenge his brother's death, he kills the Sarpanch and 8 other people. This death of 9 officials caused a furor in the nation, administration, and also among the other gangs of robbers who urge him to surrender so that the manhunt by the police would be called off, but he refused. The interview with the reporter ends here and the interview is published in the newspaper and causes a sensation.

The police continued in their search for Paan Singh Tomar, who decides to lie low for a while. He meets his family and his coach in the army who request that he surrenders. Paan Singh refuses to surrender on the principle that while he was a sportsman holding a national record, nobody came to help him with his problems, and the moment he turned a rebel, everyone wants him to be arrested.

When the gang reconvened after a month's hiatus, one of the members, Gopi, betrayed the gang by leading the police to their hideout. A shootout ensued where all members of the gang, including Paan Singh, were killed by a police team led by Late SP Raman, Late ASP Brij Lal Handa, Late Dy SP Yashwant Ghuraiya, and the key mastermind in whose region village Rathianpura exists, Circle Inspector Mahendra Pratap Singh Chauhan, who played the most pivotal role in putting informers in the area for Paan Singh, and it happened finally on the night of 1st / 2nd October 1981.