In this alternative narrative, Surpanakha, driven by a desire for vengeance upon her brother Ravana's death, plays a pivotal role in orchestrating Sita's second exile. Disguised as a female hermit, Shurpanakha approaches Sita with a cunning request: to paint a portrait of Ravana. Sita, perhaps reluctantly, complies, painting only what she knows of Ravana - his immense toe, as that's all she ever glimpsed during her captivity in Lanka.
Surpanakha takes the incomplete portrait and completes it
before invoking Brahma, the Creator, to breathe life into the depiction. With
this act, Ravana is resurrected, albeit in a painted form. Shurpanakha then
entrusts the living portrait to Sita, who, torn between her feelings and her
duty, cannot bring herself to destroy it. Instead, she conceals it beneath her
mattress, hoping to shield Rama from the truth.
However, Rama eventually discovers the living portrait, and
misunderstanding Sita's intentions, interprets her actions as a sign of her
love for another. Betrayed and heartbroken, Rama decides to exile Sita once
again, unable to reconcile his feelings with the apparent evidence before him.
This tale weaves together elements of deception, vengeance,
and misunderstanding, highlighting the complexity of relationships and the
consequences of hasty judgments.
Source – A Ramayana of Their Own – an essay by Velcheru
Narayana Rao (Author and Translator)