AMAL Kumar (Rupinder Nagra) is a rickshaw driver in New Delhi with a heart of gold.  When he accidentally causes a young girl (Priya) to be hit by a car, Amal uses all his hard earnings to pay her hospital fees.  But an eccentric billionaire (G.K. Jayaram) who had once ridden his rickshaw recognizes this man’s humanity and leaves him a fortune, if he can be found in time. 

AMAL is based on the short film of the same title expanded effectively to a full length feature.  AMAL is set in contemporary India where everyone is out to make a quick buck and where no one can be trusted.  One of the key lines, repeated in the film is that richness can be found in Amal’s poorness.  Writer/director Mehta gets his point across effectively to show that the best ending to his film need not be the happy one that normal audiences would expect.

(What the ending will not be revealed.) Yet, the beauty of it all is that the audience still leaves the theatre on Cloud Nine.  Indeed, as there is richness in a poor man, there is also pleasure for the audience in non-Hollywood endings.  AMAL is a tale of virtue brilliantly told but it is flawed by the occasional sappiness and melodrama.