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Mudhalvan album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Azhagana Ratchashiyae

From Mudhalvan · 1999

Lyricist
Vairamuthu
Singers
S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Harini, G. V. Prakash Kumar
Music director
A. R. Rahman
Movie name
Mudhalvan
Movie release year
1999
Lyrics added on
31 May 2017

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Mm mm…mm mm mm mm… mm mm…
{Azhaghaana raatchasiyae
Adinenjil gudhikkiriyae
Muttaasu vaarthayilae
Pattaasu vedikkiriyae
Adi manasa aruvaamanaiyil narukkuriyae..} (2)
Arugampullukku aruka theriyumaa
Kozhandha kumari naan aamaa
Ayira meenudhaan kokka muzhungumaa
Adukkumaa
Veliya poothu nee ulla kaaikkira
Kadalakkaadu nee aamaa
Uyira urichu nee kayira thirikkira
Sugam sugamaa
Kiliyae aalangiliyae
Kuyilae yelanguyilae
Azhaghaana raatchasiyae
Adinenjil gudhikkiriyae
Adi manasa aruvaamanaiyil narukkuriyae..
Mm mm…mm mm mm mm… mm mm…
Sooriyana rendu thundu
Senju kannil kondavalo oh oh
Chorus :Oh oh
Male :Chandhirana kallukkulla
Oora vecha pennivalo
Chorus :Oh oh oh
Rathiriya thattithatti
Getti senji maiyidavo ah ah
Chorus :Oh oh
Male :Minminiya kannathula
Otta vechu kaithattavo
Chorus :Oh oh oh
Thoravi enna tholachiputta
Thookkam ippa dhooramaiyaa
Thalaikku vechi naan padukka
Azhukku vetti thaarumaiyaa
Thoonghum thookkam kanavaa…aaah…
Kiliyae aalangiliyae
Kuyilae yelanguyilae
Azhaghaana raatchasiyae
Adinenjil gudhikkiriyae
Muttaasu vaarthayilae
Pattaasu vedikkiriyae
Adi manasa aruvaamanaiyil narukkuriyae..
Solakkolla bommaiyoda
Sodi serndhu aadum pulla
Chorus :Puliyam poovae
Chorus :Solakkolla bommaiyoda
Sodi serndhu aadum pulla
Chorus :Maghizam poovae
Thaen kootta pichi pichi
Yechi vekka latchiyamaa.. ah ah
Chorus :Oh oh
Female :Kaadhal yenna katchi vittu
Katchi maarum kaariyamaa
Chorus :Oh oh oh
Ponnu sonna thalakeezhaa
Okkippoda mudiyumaa ah ah
Chorus :Oh oh
Female :Naan nadakkum nizhalukkul
Nee vasikka sammadhamaa…
Neeraagha naan irundhaal
Un neththiyila naan iranghi
Kooraana un nenjil
Kudhichi anga kudi iruppen
Kaadaa veenaa ponen
Arugampullukku aruka theriyumaa
Kozhandha kumari naan aamaa
Ayira meenudhaan kokka muzhungumaa
Adukkumaa
Veliya poothu nee ulla kaaikkira
Kadalakkaadu nee aamaa
Uyira urichu nee kayira thirikkira
Sugam sugamaa
Mm mm…mm mm mm mm… mm mm…
Mm mm... mm mm mm mm... mm mm...
You beautiful demon,
you jump inside the depths of my heart.
With words as sweet as candy,
you burst firecrackers,
and chop my heart on a cutting blade...
Does tender grass know how to cut?
I am just an innocent girl, that's all.
Can a tiny ayirai fish swallow a stork?
Does that make any sense?
You bloom on the outside and bear fruit deep inside,
just like a peanut plant, that's what you are.
You peel away my life and twist it into rope,
so delightfully sweet!
O parrot, banyan parrot,
O cuckoo, tender young cuckoo,
You beautiful demon,
you jump inside the depths of my heart,
and chop my heart on a cutting blade...
Mm mm... mm mm mm mm... mm mm...
Did she slice the sun into two pieces
and keep them in her eyes? Oh...
Chorus: Oh oh
Male: Is she the girl who soaked the moon
deep inside a stone?
Chorus: Oh oh oh
Should I pound the darkness of the night,
turn it into thick kohl, and line your eyes? Ah...
Chorus: Oh oh
Male: Should I stick a firefly onto your cheek
and clap my hands in joy?
Chorus: Oh oh oh
Love has hooked me and left me lost,
now sleep is so far away, sir.
To rest beneath my head as I sleep,
give me your worn dhoti, sir.
Is this sleep of mine only a dream? Ah...
O parrot, banyan parrot,
O cuckoo, tender young cuckoo,
You beautiful demon,
you jump inside the depths of my heart.
With words as sweet as candy,
you burst firecrackers,
and chop my heart on a cutting blade...
With the scarecrow in the field,
she is the girl who dances as a pair!
Chorus: O tamarind flower!
Chorus: With the scarecrow in the field,
she is the girl who dances as a pair!
Chorus: O fragrant magizham flower!
By tearing away at the honeycomb,
is your only goal to taste its sweetness? Ah...
Chorus: Oh oh
Female: Is love like switching
from one political party to another?
Chorus: Oh oh oh
When a woman speaks her mind,
can you simply turn it upside down and discard it? Ah...
Chorus: Oh oh
Female: Inside the shadow where I walk,
do you agree to come and live?
If I were water,
I would trickle down your forehead,
and leap into your sharp heart
to make my home right there.
Without you, I've gone completely wild and lost!
Does tender grass know how to cut?
I am just an innocent girl, that's all.
Can a tiny ayirai fish swallow a stork?
Does that make any sense?
You bloom on the outside and bear fruit deep inside,
just like a peanut plant, that's what you are.
You peel away my life and twist it into rope,
so delightfully sweet!
Mm mm... mm mm mm mm... mm mm...
Chorus
Male
Female
Female
Male
Chorus
Male
Male
Female
Male
Chorus
Female
Female
Male
Female
Female
Chorus

Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

Azhaghaana Raatchasiyae from Mudhalvan (1999) is a playful, folk-infused romantic duet written by Vairamuthu and composed by A. R. Rahman. The song presents an endearing verbal duel between the lovers, filled with witty rural metaphors and vivid imagery. The male protagonist affectionately addresses his beloved as a beautiful demoness whose fiery words and charm cut straight through his heart, while she responds with innocent protests and rustic analogies.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Uvamai (Metaphor/Simile)

Muttaasu vaarthayilae / Pattaasu vedikkiriyae

Comparing sweet words to candy (Muttaasu vaarthai) and their impact to bursting firecrackers (Pattaasu vedikkiriyae).

Hyperbole (Exaggeration)

Sooriyana rendu thundu / Senju kannil kondavalo

Exaggerating the heroine's brightness by imagining her splitting the sun into two to place in her eyes.

Edhugai (Second-letter Rhyme)

Azhaghaana raatchasiyae / Adinenjil gudhikkiriyae

Rhyming of second consonant letters in Tamil poetry ('zza' / 'di' sound patterns across consecutive lines).

Rhetorical Question

Ayira meenudhaan kokka muzhungumaa / Adukkumaa

Asking whether tiny Ayira fish can swallow a crane to playfully demonstrate impossibility.

Did you know?

Trivia

Composed by A.R. Rahman for Shankar's blockbuster political thriller 'Mudhalvan' (1999), this song features vocals by Shankar Mahadevan, Harini, and G. V. Prakash Kumar (as a child vocalist in the intro/humming sections).

Keep listening

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