Due to a plague epidemic in Pune, the British Government deputes C.W. Rand as Chairman of the Special Plague Committee, empowering him to do whatever is necessary to control the menace. Rand's heavy handed measures deeply offend local sensibilities, driving a group of angry youngsters to assassinate him and Lt. Charles Ayerst- the first outbreak of revolutionary activities in British India.

A young woman begins her married life with preconceived notions about harassment at the hands of her mother-in-law, leading to a souring of her relationship with her husband.