该片讲述在斯里兰卡，内战已经快要结束，无数难民等待着离开这片被战火摧残的土地。为了更容易申请政治庇护，年轻的女人雅丽妮（Kalieaswari Sriniv饰）、曾经效力泰米尔猛虎组织的战士迪潘（杰苏萨桑·安东尼萨桑饰）和9岁的失去父母的小女孩伊莱娅（Claudine Vinasitha饰）冒充一家人，来到法国巴黎近郊开始了新生活。迪潘在这片贫民聚集的郊区找到了一个公寓管理员的工作，不会法语的雅丽妮也在一户人家做家政，“女儿”伊莱娅则进了附近的学校。生活看起来在往好的方向发展，但充斥着暴力、毒品、犯罪的巴黎郊区，注定不会是他们平静生活的净土，当命运不可逆抗，迪潘只好用自己最熟悉的手段，守护这个由三个陌生人组成的相依为命的“家庭”。Dheepan is a Tamil freedom fighter, a Tiger. In Sri Lanka, the Civil War is reaching its end, and defeat is near. Dheepan decides to flee, taking with him two strangers - a woman and a little girl - hoping that they will make it easier for him to claim asylum in Europe. Arriving in Paris, the 'family' moves from one temporary home to another until Dheepan finds work as the caretaker of a run-down housing block in the suburbs. He works to build a new life and a real home for his 'wife' and his 'daughter', but the daily violence he confronts quickly reopens his war wounds, and Dheepan is forced to reconnect with his warrior's instincts to protect the people he hopes will become his true family.