The Poison Tree revolves around Nagendra, a wealthy zamindar, and his wife Surjamukhi, who loves her husband very much. On a trip to Calcutta Nagendra meets young orphan girl, Kunda Nandini and decides to bring her into his family. The induction of Kunda Nandini creates a distortion in fidelity of Nagendra to his wife.

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (1838-1894) was an Indian writer, poet and journalist. He was the composer of Vande Mataram, originally in Sanskrit stotra personifying India as a mother goddess and inspiring the activists during the Indian Independence Movement. Chatterjee wrote thirteen novels and many serious, serio-comic, satirical, scientific and critical treaties in Bengali. His works were widely translated into other regional languages of India as well as in English.