Skip to content
Isaimozhi
Lyrics & meaning

Aam Bharathi Pudhiya

From Agni Sakshi · 1982

Lyricist
Vaali
Singer
Saritha
Music director
M. S. Vishwanathan
Details
Agni Sakshi1982

Lyrics & meaning

Tanglish lyrics English translation
Female
Aam….bharathi pudhiya thamizhukkuYes... Bharathi is the auspicious beginning for modern Tamil,
Podappatta pillaiyaar suzhiThe drawn auspicious 'Pillaiyaar suzhi'.
Thiruvallikkeni yaanaiThe elephant of Triplicane,
Thindru vitta thamizh karumbuThe Tamil sugarcane that was consumed.
Female
Thanakku santhaegam vantha pothellaamWhenever it had a doubt,
Aam thamizh mozhi avanaiththaanYes, the Tamil language itself turned to him,
Than agaraathiyaa puratti paarththu kondathuFlipping through him as its dictionary.
Female
Kosuvae unakku kodi namaskaaramOh mosquito, a crore salutations to you!
Veettukkul parakkum vimaanamaeOh airplane flying inside the house!
En maamiyaar meni enna unakku meenampaakkamoIs my mother-in-law's body an airport like Meenambakkam to you?
Female
Raaththiriyil anu irangiDescending like an atom at night,
Raththa soru unnukiraayaeYou feast on blood-rice!
Adhu enna saamiyaarWhat kind of ascetic is that?
Raththamo suththamaayirukkaIs the blood pure?
After all maamiyaar raththamAfter all, it is mother-in-law's blood,
Adhu kozhuppu adhigamIt has high fat and arrogance!
Female
Aanaal ondruBut one thing:
Marumagalaal kuraikka iyalaathaThe mother-in-law's fat that could not be reduced
Maamiyaarin kozhuppaiBy her daughter-in-law,
Kosuvae nee kuraikkiraaiOh mosquito, you are reducing it!
Unakku kodi namaskaaram kodi namaskaaramA crore salutations, a crore salutations to you!
Female
Pin kurippuPostscript:
Aiyo paavamOh, what a pity!
Maamiyaarukku kosukkadiA mosquito bite for the mother-in-law,
Idhu kavithaiyaalThis is a whiplash given by the daughter-in-law
Marumagal kodukkum savukkadiThrough poetry!
Female
En thalaivaaOh my leader!
Un peyarai oru paper-il ezhuthiWrite your name on a paper,
Adhai thadavi paarAnd touch and feel it;
Adhil eera pasai irukkumThere will be wet moisture on it.
Female
Yaenenil un thirunaamamBecause your sacred name,
En udhattu echchilgalaalWith the saliva of my lips,
Oru naalaikku aayiramMore than a thousand times a day,
Muraigalukku melHas been bathed, hasn't it?
Kulippaatta pattathallavoPostscript:
Female
Pin kurippuUpon reading this,
Idhai padiththavudanThe anger that was sitting on a chair
Un mookkil idhuvarai naarkaali pottuOn your nose until now,
Utkkaarnthu kondiruntha kobamShould have stood up, climbed down, and walked away!
Ezhunthu irangi nadanthu poyirukka vendumaeThere are no flowers;
Female
Pushpangal illaiIn the waters, you become a branch.
Neerugalil kilaippaen aavaaiThe poetic verses drawn by saliva,
Etchilkal varaigindra viruththangalBees come to read them;
Vandukkal avattrai vaasikka varugindranaThe north wind comes to critique them;
Vaadai kaattru avaigalai vimarchikka varugindrathuOnly humans come to steal them.
Manithargal mattumae avaigalai thiruda varugiraargal

Beyond the translation

Song interpretation

These non-traditional free-verse poems (Pudhu Kavidhai) from the film 'Agni Sakshi' express the inner thoughts, humor, rebellion, and deep devotion of a female protagonist. The verses shift dynamically across themes—from paying homage to poet Subramania Bharathi, to a sarcastic and humorous rant against her mother-in-law via a mosquito, to an intimate expression of love where repeating her lover's name moistens the paper, and finally to a philosophical reflection on art and poetry.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Metaphor (Uruvagamm)

Veettukkul parakkum vimaanamae

Compares a household mosquito to an airplane flying indoors ('Veettukkul parakkum vimaanamae') and the mother-in-law's body to an airport.

Pun / Double Entendre (Sleidai)

Maamiyaarin kozhuppai

The word 'Kozhuppu' is used cleverly to mean both physical fat (which mosquitoes feed on) and mental arrogance/audacity.

Personification (Tharkiiduththenipuperuchi)

Un mookkil idhuvarai naarkaali pottu Utkkaarnthu kondiruntha kobam

Anger is personified as a person sitting on a chair on the tip of the nose, who gets up and walks away upon reading the love letter.

Rhyme (Iyaibu)

Maamiyaarukku kosukkadi / Marumagal kodukkum savukkadi

Rhyming pair 'kosukkadi' (mosquito bite) and 'savukkadi' (whip-lash) creates rhythmic emphasis in the postscript.

Did you know?

Trivia

In K. Balachander's critically acclaimed drama 'Agni Sakshi' (1982), the heroine Kannamma (played by Saritha) suffers from psychological turmoil and expresses her raw feelings through unconventional free-verse modern poetry (Pudhu Kavidhai) penned by lyricist Vaali.

Keep listening

More from Agni Sakshi