Blending several genres, including comedy, romance, musical and crime, it is the story of a young man named Pan and his odyssey after he goes AWOL from the army and tries to make it as a luk thung singing star.

The old jailer picks up the story, saying the prisoner is a boy named Pan from his home village.

Yet, he is a good singer, and the story flashes back to a village fair, where he's up on stage singing his heart out, with his lyrics being composed on the spot and directed toward Sadao, a pretty village girl who is dancing in the crowd.

Then, when the rich kid goes to the drinks stand, Pan hands his microphone over to another performer and moves to dance with Sadao.

The rich guy, with his thuggish friends in tow, orders Pan to clean up the mess.

Via his sister, he sends Sadao a pretty blue blouse, accompanied by a love note.

Pan's run of bad luck starts when he draws the wrong number in the draft lottery and must enter the army.

A musical interlude depicts Pan and the other soldiers singing the mournful song "Mai Leum" ("Don't Forget) as they crawl on their backs in the mud under barbed wire, and during their haircuts.

One day Pan sees a poster for a singing contest and at the urging of his army buddies, he enters.

Along with a local girl, Dao, Pan wins the contest and without giving thought to the consequences, he's on a bus headed for Bangkok, where he hopes to become a big singing star.

He ends up locked inside the music company's office, where he spends the night.

The next day, he meets his new boss, a sleazy producer named Suwat, who insists Pan call him "Daddy".

She's brought him bottles of rainwater from the village, figuring the water in the city is dirty and unfit to drink.

Meanwhile, back in the village, a smooth-talking travelling salesman, peddling deworming medicine from his boat, is passing through.

He's taken a liking to Sadao, giving her some medicine for her sick baby and inviting her to a movie screening that night.

He further charms her at the screening, by demonstrating his talents as a film dubber, improvising lines to tell her how beautiful she is.

Back on the sugar-cane plantation, the workers, tired of their diet of vegetables and rice, are restive.

Starving and their clothes ragged, they happen upon a luxury hotel where they see beggars, street cleaners and motorcycle taxi drivers – poor people – being ushered in, Pan and Siew walk in and start helping themselves to the buffet, shoving food into their pockets.

It's a charity ball where the elite are dressing up as the poor, and Pan and Siew win the prize for most authentic costume.

With his hair dyed blond, he calls himself Peter and announces he is now a drug dealer, and has made quick money.

And, to add more indignity to the situation, he's married a former singing star and porn actress - Dao.

There's a final musical reprise of "Mai Leum", with all the characters in the film putting in an appearance to sing the chorus.

Sadao reluctantly accepts Pan back into her life, and breaks down, weeping profusely as the couple embraces.

It was directed by Chookiat Sakveerakul, and starred Pusin Warinruk and Focus Jirakul.