Week 4 Story: Sita's New Life

(Sita with Kusha and Lava, can be sourced here)

(Photo of Sita, can be sourced here)

The year is 2019 and the setting is a cocktail party in a wealthy neighborhood of Los Angeles. The main character, Rama, is nervous because he will be meeting his ex-fiancé after 8 years. Rama had his big break 8 years ago but it was his management company that thought having a fiancé would ruin his image. Despite all their history together and her devotion to him throughout his struggling acting career, she felt if her departure helped him succeed as an actor she would do so, which she did. The fact is, even after all these years, there has not been a day Rama hasn't thought about his beloved ex-fiancé Sita. From all the red carpets, endorsement campaigns, film appearances, he still yearned to share these experiences with his eternal love. His love with Sita was something eternal, and he knew he lost something. He had wanted to contact her over the years to check up, but she was not on social media and eventually moved to Paris to pursue her cooking career. It so happened a mutual friend was throwing a party and she happened to be in town for the week.

Rama laid out his maroon suit, as this was her favorite color. He kept rehearsing what he would say to her when he saw her, but he knew no matter how much he practiced that he would be dumbfounded at the sight of her. Finally, the moment came. His Uber was here and he had to go.

When he saw Sita, she was as beautiful from what he remembered. He just stood there admiring her before they locked eyes and she approached him. With her, followed another woman, around the same age. Rama could feel his heart pounding and downed the remainder of his drink quickly before she reached him. While he went in for a full hug, she initially went in for a side hug but then a full hug after she realized what he was doing.


"Hi Sita, you look so beautiful tonight, but I wouldn't expect any less. How have you been?" Rama said.

Sita responded, "Rama, you have always been so sweet with your words. I'm doing fine, moving to Paris has been one of the best decisions. I have been able to test my skills, learn so many new techniques and interact with some of the world's best chefs. I never thought I would be able to make a living out of something I loved"

"That's so great, I always knew you had it in you. I could never get enough of your signature salmon dish" he shyly stated.

Sita: "Thank you.. but I actually focus on non-meat meals now, as I'm a vegetarian"

Rama: "Well I guess that is new.. why?"

Sita: "Well, my wife is a veterinarian. She has educated me about the morals and quality of meat industry and is surprisingly very informed on vegetarian dishes, I started cutting red meat out about 6 years ago but transitioned..."

Rama's heart dropped and mind went blank when she mentioned her wife. Whatever chance he felt he had with her was now gone. He actually regretted showing up to the party thinking he and she had some sort of chance. Of course she moved on, she was Sita. He knew by choosing his career path that this was a possibility, but that didn't stop him from feeling upset. He tried to cheerfully carry on a conversation and they parted ways.



BIBLIOGRAPHY: The Valmiki's Hermitage story obtained from the PDE Version of the Ramayana.

AUTHORS NOTE: I'm watching the Netflix Versace American Crime series which kind of influenced the setting for all of this. I still could not believed Rama exiled Sita after everything. The only "real" struggle Rama went through was being exiled for 14 years, but that was not Sita's fault. Sita loved him enough to follow him in his exile, sacrificing her friends, family, and social life for him. She was lured and kidnapped. I do commend Rama for saving her and can MAYBE understand his doubts about her purity, but she proved herself already with the fire test. When the kingdom gossiped, he did not defend or protect her. That is not love. I felt Ravana loved Sita more, in his own twisted way.  I wanted to give Sita the ending she deserved-but I didn't want it to be simply "she found love with another man". I wanted her to have a partner that encouraged her in different aspects: her self and career. I gave it a modern twist to make it more relatable and understandable since I am not fully versed on cultural norms then (but I am assuming this would not be it). Rama missed out and deserves to know that.