manthara

This painting shows Queen Kaikeyi begging King Dashrath to honour the two wishes that he had promised her. Influenced by her evil maid Manthara, pictured as a black shadow in the background, she asked that he make her son Bharat King of Ayodhya and that he send Ram into exile for 14 years.

The artist depicts the grandeur of the marble pillars in the palace and the beautiful architecture during this time. He shows King Dashrath looking quite helpless as Queen Kaikeyi is on her hands and knees begging him to meet her demands.