After beginning their train trip to California, a famous film actress and her daughter discover their compartment has also been assigned to a handsome biology professor.
Two scriptwriters argue about the fate of Henrietta, a charming and gamine shopgirl. One favors a comical path for their heroine, who is overcome with sentimental love for a young photographer on Bastille Day.
The charming Mr. Sampat weaves his way into theatrical company with his moneymaking schemes, only to cause the everyone involved to go bankrupt, including Malini, the young actress who has fallen in love with him.
Wacky rich woman subjects her husband, servants and friends to a series of elaborate masquerades, remodeling her house and wardrobe every couple of days to represent different historical eras or cultural milieux.