Firaaq is a political thriller that follows the lives of people who were the victims of the violent 2002 Gujarat riots. Khan Saheb (Naseeruddin Shah), an elderly Muslim classical vocalist realize the gravity of the situation after seeing the destruction of a shrine dedicated to the Sufi saint, Wali Gujarat. A middle-aged woman, Aarti (Deepti Naval) is traumatized for not saving a Muslim girl from the mob. Muneera (Shahana Goswami) and her husband Hanif (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) return home to find it burned and looted, and suspect their Hindu neighbors behind the loot and plan to take revenge. Samir Shaikh (Sanjay Suri) and Anuradha Desai (Tisca Chopra), a wealthy inter-communal couple, too become victims of the riots and decide to move back to Delhi. In the middle of all this chaos, some still have hope and pray for good times.