- Lyricist
- Suratha
- Singer
- P. Leela
- Music director
- G. Ramanathan
- Movie name
- Kathanayaki
- Movie release year
- 1955
- Lyrics added on
- 14 Sept 2025
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
Adhirstam from the 1955 film Kathanayaki is a philosophical and lighthearted song sung by P. Leela, set to music composed by G. Ramanathan with lyrics by Suratha. The song reflects on the nature of destiny, fortune, and human patience. It highlights that true luck cannot be forced or rushed by panic, drawing upon classic folk wisdom that a hen's crowing cannot force the sun to rise ahead of time. Despite mankind's endless, restless chase after wealth, fortune unfolds strictly on its own timeline. The singer reflects on her own life, expressing how her patience paid off when her creative dreams came true. Envisioning a bright future where she lives like a queen and achieves renown in the world of music, she compares herself to a free skylark soaring through the sky of fine arts, celebrating both her artistic passion and her trust in divine timing.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Proverb / Folk Wisdom (Pazhamozhi)
“Pettai kozhi koovinaal vidiyumaa”
Uses the popular Tamil folk saying about a hen crowing to emphasize that natural processes and destiny cannot be rushed.
Rhetorical Question
“Pathatta pattaal mudiyumaa”
Asks a rhetorical question to point out the inefficiency and futility of panicking or rushing.
Simile (Upamai)
“Kalaivaanil mevidum vaanampaadi pol”
Compares the singer's musical life to a lark ('vaanampaadi') soaring freely in the sky of arts ('kalaivaan').
Metaphor (Uruvagam)
“Isai vaani endra pugazh adaivaen”
Metaphorically addresses achieving ultimate musical fame as becoming 'Isai Vaani' (the goddess of music).
Refrain / Chorus (Eiybu)
“Istamaaga varuvathaanunga adhirstam”
Repeats the central thesis line emphasizing that good fortune comes strictly on its own terms.
Did you know?
Trivia
The lyricist Suratha was popularly known in Tamil literature as 'Uvamai Kavagnar' (The Poet of Metaphors) due to his innate ability to explain deep philosophical truths using simple everyday analogies, as seen in this song with the hen and dawn metaphor. The film Kathanayaki (1955) featured music by master composer G. Ramanathan, whose classical compositions defined early Tamil cinema.
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