Jamal Malik, an 18-year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, is just a step away from winning the game show "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" and wins 20 million rupees. Interrupting the game, police arrest him on suspicion of fraud. From where a young boy, who grew up on the street, can know so much? During the interrogation, Jamal tells the police the sad story of his life: about his adventures with his brother, of skirmishes with local gangs, his tragic love. Each chapter of his personal story reveals to him the answers to the quiz questions. When the game resumes, the police inspector and sixty million viewers want to find out the answer to only one question: why did this young man, without the express desire for wealth, decide to take part in the TV program?