The film opens with a school master Dinanath Chauhan [Alok Nath] and his 10 year old son Vijay [Manjunath] watching the sunset over their village of Mandwa, India. Vijay innocently asks why their village becomes dark [there is no electricity] at night when the city [Mumbai] remains lit. The two carry on their morning walk with Dinanath teaching his son the poem Agneepath.Dinanath is a reformer. He runs a small school, leads a [rather weak] campaign to obtain electricity and infrastructure, and generally uplift the village. Unbeknownst to him, the village of Mandwa has been insidiously taken over by a powerful crime baron Kancha Cheena [Danny Denzongpa]. Kancha uses the coastal village as a landing point for his contraband from abroad. The village must remain an unnoticed hamlet on the west coast of India, so Kancha opposes any move for improvement, and specifically intends to remove or eliminate Dinanath. Kancha buys off a local merchant Dinkar Rao [Goga Kapoor]. Dinkar Rao stages a scandal where the upright Dinanath is lured to the town brothel, drugged, and found to be in bed with a local prostitute. The angry villagers lynch Dinanath before his wife Suhasini [Rohini Hattangadi] and his young children Vijay and Siksha. Suhasini and the children are forced to flee Mandwa. Young Vijay swears to avenge his fathers death. They arrive, penniless and destitute, in Bombay. As is common for street children, Vijay becomes a bootblack. Vijay is polishing a rich mans shoes when he witnesses an attempt to assassinate Kancha Cheena. The assassins are hired by the rival dons Terelin [Sharat Saxena], Usman bhai [Avtar Gill] and Anna Shetty [Deepak Shirke]. Some time after, when Suhasini applies for a job at a nearby gas station [owned by Kancha], some of Kanchas goons try to molest her. Young Vijay files a police complaint, but quickly realizes that the cops are in league with the thugs, and so Vijay decides to blow up the gas station. Vijay is hauled before the senior Inspector Gaitonde [Vikram Gokhale]. Gaitonde is a good cop and tries to get Vijay off the streets. But Vijay asks why the cops did not act, for their failure forced Vijay to take matters into his own hands; and Gaitonde is simply unable to answer. Some 25 years later, Vijay has grown [played by Amitabh Bachchan] to become a don in his own right. He sits before Gaitonde [now a police commissioner]. When asked his name, Vijay replies: "Vijay Dinanath Chauhan, poora nam, maa ka naam Suhasini Chauhan, gaon Mandwa" This becomes Vijays tagline and is repeated throughout the movie. Gaitonde, still sympathetic towards Vijay, urges him to give up crime. Vijay asks why. He has risen from utter poverty, fought through a hard and bitter world, and become a wealthy don; the system [including several corrupt cops] has failed him entirely; and why must Gaitonde, who is unable to eliminate corruption in his own house, speak to Vijay of law, order and a just society? Vijay points out that for all of Gaitondes efforts, the cops have no real evidence [yet another failing of the system] to prosecute him. Gaitonde resignedly warns Vijay of danger and death at every turn. Vijay retorts that he knows who his enemies are, whereas Gaitonde must forever be subject to an irrecoverably failed system. This interchange forms an important theme in the film where a such a society will produce Vijays. Vijay arrives next at a gathering of the dons Terelin, Usman bhai and Shetty and tells them that he knows of their plan to assassinate him. He tells them that he wont run away and will take their bullets head on. If he dies they get everything but if he survives its him all the way. As he expected, they attempt to assissinate him; they are stunned when he bares himself and invites them to shoot him at point blank range; they shoot him nonetheless and leave him to die. Vijay is rescued by a comical coconut seller, Krishnan Iyer MA [Mithun Chakraborty]. The dons try to kill him in the hospital, but he is again saved by Krishnan, and nursed back to health by Nurse Mary Matthew [Madhavi]. Vijay appoints Krishnan as a bodyguard for Siksha [Neelam]. Vijay faces another battle on the personal front. His mother Suhasini strongly disapproves of his life of crime, and wishes him to follow Dinanaths noble footsteps. Vijay grows apart from his mother and seeks a shoulder with Mary; their association blossoms into a relationship and they marry. Mary gives birth to a baby boy. Around this time, Siksha develops an affection for Krishnan; Vijay is initially okay with this, but discovers that Siksha wishes to lead a normal life and must inevitably distance herself from Vijay. As a result of the alienation from his mother, and drifting apart with Siksha, Vijays family life with Mary suffers. He gradually becomes uncomfortable with his status as a crime don. Realizing Vijays growing stature on the crime scene, Kancha arranges a meeting. Vijay arrives at Kanchas beachfront home. Vijay demands a piece of the action at Mandwa. Unaware of Vijays identity, Kancha agrees, but with a warning to never try to cross Kancha. Vijay arrives in Mandwa [where Dinkar Rao is now the de facto mayor]. Vijay stages a reverse controversy. He applies police pressure on Dinkar Rao until Dinkar Rao signs over the town deeds; Vijay immediately reveals this two-faced deal to the villagers who promptly proceed to lynch Dinkar Rao. Vijay stands over a dying Dinkar Rao and reveals his identity. Kancha arrives on the scene. But Vijay has already turned Kanchas assistant Laila; it is revealed that Laila is the illegitimate daughter of the prostitute used to frame Dinanath Chauhan, and that Laila has always aspired revenge on Kancha. The cops show up [as planned by Vijay]. Laila produces critical evidence [collected over her years as Kanchas assistant] whereupon the cops swiftly arrest Kancha and take him away as Vijay utters his tagline. Having thus accomplished his purpose, Vijay decides to retire from crime, returns to his mother and asks her to move back with him to a peaceful life in Mandwa. In the meantime, Kancha pulls some strings and escapes from prison. Laila is gunned to death before she can give evidence. All of vijays trusted men are attacked and end up in the hospital. Taking advantage Kancha moves to Mandwa, forcibly takes over the town, abducts Suhasini and Siksha, and has Krishnan shot by a drive-by shooter. Vijay reaches the town and is challenged by Kancha to try and save his entire family. Vijay runs through the flames to attack Kancha and is joined by Krishnan. After a long and violent battle, Kancha is killed and Vijay is mortally wounded. Vijay returns to his mother and recites, with his dying breath, the poem Agneepath. Suhasini is mortified to understand why Vijay initially chose crime, and why things came to such a pass to achieve redemption. The film ends with Vijay, now forgiven and redeemed, gently passing away in his mothers lap.

Production

The film is said to have been inspired and based on the life of Mumbai underworld gangster and urban dacoit, Manya Surve. He was the first person to be shot dead in an encounter by the Mumbai police. The main character, Vijay Dinanath Chauhan [played by Amitabh Bachchan] was heavily based on Surve, with Bachchan even copying the gangsters voice. The music playing in the background while Vijay Chauhan is traveling in the car in Mauritius is Mory Kantes "Yé ké yé ké". The background score of the film is copied from French composer Jean Michel Jarres Rendez-Vous albums "Second Rendez-Vous" and "Third Rendez-Vous".

Awards

Won *National Film Award for Best Actor - Amitabh Bachchan *Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award - Mithun Chakraborty *Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award - Rohini Hattangadi Nominated *Filmfare Best Actor Award - Amitabh Bachchan