We experience the life of some civilians that are affected by the war through the eyes of a ten year old gifted boy, Azeem. There is an attack on the village and the lone teacher of the village, Abdul, loses his daughter on the eve of her wedding. Abdul’s otherwise proactive attitude towards teaching the children turns to bitterness and hopelessness and leans towards rage. Azeem, being in the midst of war realizes the importance of Abdul as being the only teacher of the village and makes an extraordinary effort to help him. The sacrifice that Azeem makes by his action towards healing Abdul and putting his own life at risk makes Abdul realize that he has a much bigger responsibility and that is to keep teaching the children and thereby keep the hopes of the people alive