Ohana is a Korean maid employed by the Japanese Kobayashi family in occupied Korea during World War II. Her primary duty is caring for the family’s young daughter, Chitose Kobayashi, with whom she forms a deep bond. Alongside her work, Ohana scrounges funds to pay for medicine for her ailing mother.

An imprudent mistake by Ohana, one that could have cost Chitose her life, leads to her dismissal. Her personal life is difficult; her father disapproves of her efforts to help her mother, throwing out the money she gathered and shutting the door in her face.

After the war, as Soviet forces invade North Korea, the Kobayashi family flees south. Ohana does not join their escape. In a later period, an adult Chitose Kobayashi, now a successful actress, performs in a play. Ohana is present in the audience, indicating her survival and a kind of reunion.