A novel Schiff base ligand N-(4-phenylthiazol-2yl)-2-((2-thiaxo-1,2-dihydroquinolin-3-yl)methylene)hydrazinecarboxamide (L) obtained by the condensation of N-(4-phenylthiazol-2-yl)hydrazinecarboxamide with 2-thioxo-1,2-dihydroquinoline-3-carbaldehyde and its newly synthesized Cu(II), Co(II), Ni(II), and Zn(II) complexes have been characterized by elemental analysis and various spectral studies like FT-IR, 1H NMR, ESI mass, UV-Visible, ESR, TGA/DTA, and powder X-ray diffraction studies. The Schiff base ligand (L) behaves as tridentate ONS donor and forms the complexes of type [ML(Cl)2] with square pyramidal geometry. The Schiff base ligand (L) and its metal complexes have been screened in vitro for their antibacterial and antifungal activities by minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method. The DNA cleavage activity of ligand and its metal complexes were studied using plasmid DNA pBR322 as a target molecule by gel electrophoresis method. The brine shrimp bioassay was also carried out to study the in vitro cytotoxicity properties for the ligand and its metal complexes against Artemia salina. The results showed that the biological activities of the ligand were found to be increased on complexation.