The director Raj Kumar Santhoshi is back with yet another women-oriented social subject after Damini. Lajja focuses on the plight of four women who have been exploited in life.

 The story enfolds from the various encounters one of them - Vaidehi has in life and her realisation that women are exploited everywhere. Vaidehi (Manisha Koirala ) is married to an influential man Raghu (Jackie shroff) in New York who only needs her for an heir . Sick of his infidelity and abuses she runs away from her husband .. then her journey begins.

 Her first encounter is with Maithili (Mahima Chaudhary) on her wedding day. She sees the young bride Maithili's courage to rebel when her father is humiliated by the grooms father for the dowry. But in the end the wedding doesn't take place.

 These events more or less makes the first half of the movie. Here the director tries to commercialise with songs and melodrama and the purpose of the subject goes off- track. But he makes up on the second half with powerful portrayals by Madhuri and Rekha.

Janki (Madhuri Dixit), portrays a stage artist and dancer in the village who has a mind of her own. Vaidehi sees her, rebelling against her mentor Purushuttam (Tinu Anand) who exploits her and paying a price for it. Madhuri with her dancing and acting skills dazzles us with her class act, especially as 'Sita' in a stage play of Ramayan, where she questions the credibility of Lord Rama.

The director has woven the fourth character Ramdulari (Rekha) based on a real -life story. She plays a low caste Dalit village mid-wife who has a strong feel for women's rights . Even then she is powerless in-front of Gajendra Babu (Danny Dengzonpa) the upper caste Yadav , after her son elopes with his daughter. Her performance when she is begging for mercy from the boys she helped give birth as a mid-wife before she is gang raped and killed is heart-wrenching.

Bulwa (Ajay Devgan), a dacoit with super-hero like qualities has acted well as the one who helps Vaidehi take a stand. The movie ends with Vaidehi finally exploding in her realisation that women in any country or on any levels are exploited one way or the other in the name of caste, religion or tradition. Santoshi deserves full credit for trying to focus on a theme different from others and for bringing out powerful performances but at the same time he has tried to commercialise with a huge star cast , sizzling dance and song sequences especially “Aaye, Aa Jaaye”, “Mujhe Saajan Ke Ghar”, “Badi Mukhkil Baba Badi Mushkil" and failed to focus on the theme.