Seventeen-year-old Moorti stands in front of her middle-aged husband's funeral pyre, fearing the two brothers-in-law who will push her into it. Even as she is at the edge of despair and hysteria, Moorti is rescued by the dashing Job Charnock who was passing by on his ship. Charnock, an agent of the British East India Company, whisks Moorti away to his settlement. There, the young woman gets a new lease of life as Maria, as well as job employment and shelter in Charnock's factory. As the months roll by, Charnock falls in love with the feisty, intelligent, driven woman Maria blossoms into an affection she returns in full. But the going isn't easy for the couple. Forced into exile, they retreat to Hooghly, along the banks of the Ganges. Here Maria dreams of building a small settlement for the people living in the villages nearby. Will her dream come true? Will she able to give the villagers a good life, work opportunities and financial stability?