- Lyricist
- K. M. Krishnan
- Singer
- K. J. Yesudas
- Music director
- Shankar Ganesh
- Movie name
- Nadamadum Silagal
- Movie release year
- 1982
- Lyrics added on
- 22 Jun 2022
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
The song 'Nadamadum Silagal' offers a deep critique of social inequality, poverty, and systemic oppression. It describes the wretched plight of impoverished laborers who are trapped in the darkness of ignorance and treated like pawned commodities rather than human beings. Living without education or basic human rights, they work relentlessly like cattle while remaining hungry, accepting their miserable state of servitude as normal. The lyrics compare these oppressed individuals to lifeless 'walking statues' who have been stripped of dignity. The poet questions the existence of humanity in a world that allows such dehumanizing degradation to persist without change.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Metaphor (Uruvagam)
“Verum jadamaaga nadamaadum silaigal”
Compares ignorance to darkness ('Ariyaamai irulil') and living, oppressed humans to inanimate 'walking statues' ('nadamaadum silaigal').
Simile (Uvamai)
“Vaalilaa naai pola kulaikkum”
Compares the unwearied labor of the impoverished workers to cattle ('maadaaga uzhaikkum') and their desperate subservience to a tailless dog ('Vaalilaa naai pola').
Rhyme / Assonance (Iyaibu & Monai)
“Padikkaatha vizhigal sirippaana mozhigal”
Uses rhyming endings ('vizhigal', 'mozhigal', 'ezhilgal', 'kalaigal') to establish a rhythmic musical flow.
Rhyming Couplets (Edhugai)
“Adiththaalum mithiththaalum sumakkum”
The second letter harmony ('Adiththaalum' / 'Adhu' / 'Alukkaamal') creates strong structural meter in the stanza describing slave labor.
Did you know?
Trivia
'Nadamadum Silagal' (1982) features music composed by the veteran duo Shankar-Ganesh, with lyrics by K. M. Krishnan. Sung emotionally by K. J. Yesudas, the song serves as a socio-political commentary on labor exploitation and structural poverty in contemporary society.
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