Skip to content
Isaimozhi
Lyrics & meaning

Ammamma Sollamma En

From Melam Kottu Thaali Kattu · 1988

Lyricist
Pulamaipithan
Singer
Uma Ramanan
Music director
Premasrikemadasa
Details
Melam Kottu Thaali Kattu1988

Lyrics & meaning

Tanglish lyrics English translation
Female
Ammamma sollamma en nenjil ulla kadhaiOh dear mother, tell the story residing in my heart
Ennavendru sollu kiliyaeTell me what it is, oh parrot
Akkakka akkakkoo indrennai solla vandhaAkkakka akkakkoo, today you came to tell me
Vellai mana sellakilliyaeOh precious parrot with a pure white heart
Female
Ammamma sollamma en nenjil ulla kadhaiOh dear mother, tell the story residing in my heart
Ennavendru sollu kiliyaeTell me what it is, oh parrot
Akkakka akkakkoo indrennai solla vandhaAkkakka akkakkoo, today you came to tell me
Vellai mana sellakilliyaeOh precious parrot with a pure white heart
Female
Margazhi maadham vaadai kulirilIn the cold northern breeze of the month of Margazhi
Naaningu kaathirunthenI was waiting here in anticipation
Boomi ennum vaasal muzhudhum aasaiyil kolamittenAcross the entrance of the whole earth, I drew decorative Kolam patterns with desire
Female
Kaanbadhu ellam kaadhal thalaivanEverything I see, my beloved lord
Nee varum paadhaigalaeAre the paths along which you walk
Ketpadhu ellam kanna undhan kaaladi oosaigalaeEverything I hear, my Kannan, are the sounds of your footsteps
Female
Aasai ennum aruvikkul vizhunthuvittenI fell headlong into the waterfall of desire
Aadai thannai mayakkathil nazhuva vittenIn a spellbound trance, I let my garments slip away
Ilamaiyum viragamum enakkindru purinthathuToday I truly understood youth and the torment of separation
Female
Ammamma sollamma en nenjil ulla kadhaiOh dear mother, tell the story residing in my heart
Ennavendru sollu kiliyaeTell me what it is, oh parrot
Akkakka akkakkoo indrennai solla vandhaAkkakka akkakkoo, today you came to tell me
Vellai mana sellakilliyaeOh precious parrot with a pure white heart
Female
Aasaigalellam kaanal nadhiyilAre all desires merely water waves running
Oodidum neeralaiyaaIn a river that is only a mirage?
Kaadhalum kooda orrnaal nadakkum oranga nadagamaIs love also just a one-act play performed for a single day?
Female
Nee oru paadhi indrae adhanaal padhiyilYou were one half of me, and so halfway through
Nee pirindhaaiYou parted ways and left me
Aanandha megam kanneer pozhiyum vaedhanaiA pain where a cloud of bliss sheds bitter tears
Nee koduthaaiIs the agony you gave to me
Female
Moganam paadiya paravai adhuThe bird that once sang in the Mohanam ragam
Sogathil unnai ennai azhugirathuNow weeps in sorrow for you and me
Oru manam pirinthathu oru manam erinthathuOne heart was separated, and one heart was burned to ashes
Female
Ammamma sollamma kannukkul mullaiOh dear mother, tell the story of Krishna
Veitha kannan kadhai sollu kiliyaeWho placed thorns inside my eyes, tell me oh parrot
Akkakka akkakkoo aagaasa pandhal ittuAkkakka akkakkoo, erecting a canopy in the open sky
Aada kanda chinna killiyaeOh little parrot that was seen dancing
Female
Ammamma sollamma kannukkul mullaiOh dear mother, tell the story of Krishna
Veitha kannan kadhai sollu kiliyaeWho placed thorns inside my eyes, tell me oh parrot
Akkakka akkakkoo aagaasa pandhal ittuAkkakka akkakkoo, erecting a canopy in the open sky
Aada kanda chinna killiyaeOh little parrot that was seen dancing

Beyond the translation

Song interpretation

The song 'Ammamma Sollamma' from the 1988 film 'Melam Kottu Thaali Kattu' expresses the tender longing and eventual heartbreak of a woman addressing a companion parrot. In the early stanzas, she recalls waiting eagerly through the chilly winter month of Margazhi, envisioning her beloved everywhere and succumbing completely to the ecstasy of youth and romance. As the song progresses, her joy turns into grief as she laments how love turned out to be an illusory mirage and a fleeting play. The lyrics depict her emotional destruction, describing how her lover left her halfway and planted painful thorns of grief where sweet visions once resided.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Metaphor (Uvaman)

Aasai ennum aruvikkul vizhunthuvitten

Desire is compared to a rushing waterfall into which the protagonist loses control and falls.

Imagery and Paradox

Aasaigalellam kaanal nadhiyil Oodidum neeralaiyaa

Desires are likened to waves in a mirage river, conveying the phantom nature of her unfulfilled love.

Oxymoron / Contrast

Aanandha megam kanneer pozhiyum vaedhanai

Combines 'Aanandha megam' (cloud of joy) with 'kanneer pozhiyum vaedhanai' (tears shedding agony) to express tragic grief born out of former happiness.

Visual Metaphor

Kannukkul mullai veitha kannan kadhai

Expresses extreme pain and grief through the striking imagery of thorns embedded directly inside the eyes.

Did you know?

Trivia

'Melam Kottu Thaali Kattu' features music composed by Sri Lankan composer Premasrikemadasa, marking a rare cross-border musical effort in late-1980s Tamil cinema. The song features expressive vocal rendition by Uma Ramanan and poetic lyricism by Pulamaipithan.

Keep listening

More from Melam Kottu Thaali Kattu