Yateem is an action romantic drama. An honest Inspector Yadav (Kulbhushan Kharbanda), while trying to catch a criminal couple, shoots them on duty. However, he pities their orphan son, Krishna, so he takes him with him and raises him with his daughter, Gauri. Growing up, Gauri (Farha Naaz) and Krishna (Sunny Deol) fall in love with each other. However, Chanchal, Yadav’s second wife, is also attracted to Krishna, and tries to create misunderstandings between Krishna and Gauri. Meanwhile, Yadav worries that Krishna might come face to face with Daku Purkhiya (Amrish Puri), the gang leader in which Krishna’s father was a member. How Krishna’s life takes different turns and his past comes haunting him forms the rest of the plot.