The plot the story is in two pars - Purvabhag i.e. earlier part and Uttarbhag i.e. later part. The entire story is related to three lives of Chandrapid and Pundarik.
There is in the begining of the story the description of impression and splendour of the king Shudrak of Vidisha. One day a beautiful woman went to the court of the king Shudrak with a parrot named Vaishampayan. This parrot is able to talk in the human language. Thus it provides entertainment to its listeners. It narrates the story of Kadambari in the court. The parrot in the begining of the story talks about his own suffering. After that there is a story of the king Chandrapaid and his friend Vaishmapayan narrated by the saint Jabali. Once the king Chadrapid sets out to conquer the world. (i.e Digvijaya) and reaches Himalaya. He sees here a pair of Kinnar and reaches holy late running after the kinnar couple. (Mahakavi Ban has given a beautiful description of the lake Accodha) Chandrapid hears very sweet melody when he reaches the lake. He going in the direction of music, reaches the Shiva temple. There Mahasweta was playing the lute (veena). Here Chandrapid and Mahasweta meet. Mahasweta narrates her love affair with Chandrapid to Pundarik. After that Chandrapid comes to know Kadambari the friend companion of Mahasweta and he falls in love with her. After that Chandrapid had to reaturn to Ujjayini. The beetle box bearer Patralekha of the king presents herself before the king with a message of love from Kadambari and with that the 'Purvabhag' earlier part of the work Kadambari ends.
Chandrapid reaturns to Mahasweta in the 'Uttarbhag'. Here he learns the news about his friend Vaishampayan. Vaishampayan falls a prey to a curse Yog be a parrot for his love for Mahasweta. Chandrapid in his deep sorrow for his friend becoming/getting transformed into a parrot and sacrificed his life. On this side, Kapinjal reaches the Ashram of Jabalimuni searching his friend who had become a parrot. Here he learns that the parrot was taken away a damsel and that she had taken it to the court of the king Shudrak. Kapinjal goes to the kings court. And here the whole story gets revealed According to that that girl (who had taken away the parrot) was Pundrik's mother Laxmi. Pundarik was Vaishampayan in earlier life. The king Shudrak was the king Chandrapid in his early life.
Shukra and Pundarik sacrificed their lives with the revealation of this unimaginable story. On the other hand Chandrapid's dead body revived, Pundarik comes down from the sky. And the happy reunion of Mahasweta - Pundarik and Kadambari Chandrapid takes place.
This story consisting mysterious happening is the best story of not only of Bana and of the entire Sanskrit literature. Bana has written this story with his incomparable talent. All desciption are very well- proportioned. All the characters are beautiful and living. Delineation of love is very lofty and unvoluptuous. In this we find accasionally very interesting illustrations of multi faced experiences of Bana.
The style of this work of Bana is Panchali, studded with compound sentences frequently used pun, Therein we find figures of speech used often and regularly/ frequently. The flow of interest in the story is continuous in it. And for all these reasons Bana has good fortune to get a seat in the line of Kalidasa and Bhavbhuti. It is said that the Goddess Saraswati herself had taken birth as Ban.(वाणी बाणो बभूव ह ।)