The action takes place in the early 1930s in the fictional Asian state of Gulistan. The construction of railways in the country is hampered by a strong foreign state. Under the guise of a “saint from Mecca,” a saboteur-provocateur arrives in Gulistan. Carrying out the will of his masters, he incites the people to hostility against any progressive actions in the country, preparing an uprising with the aim of causing foreign intervention. But the Gulistans expose the “saint”; their faith in the USSR is unshakable...

The girl Zhenya strives to be a leader among teenagers: she moves from one roof to another at a dizzying height, she is not afraid of anything except mice... The film tells about one day of the girl - the day of her birth.

After the war, the instructor of the district committee Kolychev comes to the village of Usachyovka, which was burned by the Germans, in order to help people move to new lands. But not everyone wanted to leave their homes. Many flatly refused to leave. The coming spring thaw cut them off from the outside world. But the impending famine and the first peace days of spring brought everyone who remained together, among whom was Borka, the son of a fleeing policeman

Friends serve in the same military unit - commanders of tank battalions, majors Oleg Sedov, Vladimir Likhachev, Ivan Zverko. During a training exercise, Sedov makes a risky decision to break through the swamp. His battalion manages to be the first to occupy the height, but Likhachev’s battalion is only ten minutes behind the first battalion, but at the same time Likhachev, as always, remains cautious and does not agree to the risky proposal to go through the swamp. Sedov pays severely for his recklessness. One of his battalion's tanks overturns and falls into the swamp...