One dark night a former native of a rural Thai village has his men steal the head of the towns Ong Bak (Buddha statue) to win favor with ruthless Bangkok crime boss Khom Tuan. The locals regard the theft as a catastrophe, and seek a champion to retrieve their lost treasure. They find their man in Ting, an orphaned youngster raised at the local temple, and schooled by Pra Ku, a kindly monk, in an ancient system of Muay Thai: Nine Body Weapons. Ting travels to the mean streets of Bangkok, where hes forced to compete in illegal street fights, taking on both local and foreign opponents to win the head of Ong Bak from the pitiless underworld kingpin.