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Appu VI Std album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Chenna Vaannaa

From Appu VI Std · 2024

Lyricist
Mani Amuthavan
Singer
Anthony Daasan
Music director
Allen Vijay
Movie name
Appu VI Std
Movie release year
2024
Lyrics added on
9 Oct 2024

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Chenna vaannaa
Nee yaararundha enna
You welcome kanna
Namma gaana
Vaa dola thatum
Un life um synck aagumna
Avaa melannaalu
Ivaa keezhanaalu
Nanga paathu pazhakkam illai
Ada vaa gopalu
Polam beach maalu
Vaazhum naalu smallu
Vaa hey poda bigilu
Podadha civilu
Ada enga mela enna foulu
Yei enga chennai tamilu
Adangaadha thimilu
Nee vachukinaa aava dumeelu
Palichunnu chennai minna
Polachome naanga thaane
Alukunnu engalathaan verati veesuriye
Oru naal enga koralum kekkum
Appa theerum enga yekkam
Varumai thaandi jeyichu kaattum
Nikkadhu enga ootam
Dai en manna pudungi
En kannu kalangi
Naan nikkirene roatoram thaane
Naan odi thirincha
Naan paadi thirincha
En veeta vittu porene naane
Chenna vaannaa
Nee yaararundha enna
You welcome kanna
Namma gaana
Vaa dola thatum
Un life um synck aagumna
Avaa melannaalu
Ivaa keezhanaalu
Nanga paathu pazhakkam illai
Ada vaa gopalu
Polam beach maalu
Vaazhum naalu smallu
Vaa hey poda bigilu
Podadha civilu
Ada enga mela enna foulu
Yei enga chennai tamilu
Adangaadha thimilu
Nee vachukinaa aava dumeelu
Come to Chennai, brother!
Whoever you are, what does it matter?
You're welcome, dear friend!
Our Gaana (Chennai street music),
Come, hear the dholak drum beat!
And your life will sync right in!
Whether someone is called high class,
Or someone is deemed low class,
We have never looked down on anyone like that!
Hey, come on, Gopalu!
Let's go to the beach and the mall!
The days we live are too few!
Come on, blow your whistle!
Don't act all high and mighty!
Hey, what foul can you find in us?
Hey, our Chennai Tamil
Carries an untamable swagger!
If you mess with us, you'll get blasted!
For Chennai to shine so brightly,
It's people like us who toiled and lived here, right?
Treating us like dirt, you chase us out and throw us away!
One day, our voices will be heard too,
And on that day, our longing will finally end.
Overcoming poverty, we will win and show the world,
Our run will never stop!
Hey, with my land snatched away,
With tears welling up in my eyes,
Here I stand on the roadside!
Hey, where I once ran around freely,
Where I once sang and wandered,
I am leaving that very home behind!
Come to Chennai, brother!
Whoever you are, what does it matter?
You're welcome, dear friend!
Our Gaana (Chennai street music),
Come, hear the dholak drum beat!
And your life will sync right in!
Whether someone is called high class,
Or someone is deemed low class,
We have never looked down on anyone like that!
Hey, come on, Gopalu!
Let's go to the beach and the mall!
The days we live are too few!
Come on, blow your whistle!
Don't act all high and mighty!
Hey, what foul can you find in us?
Hey, our Chennai Tamil
Carries an untamable swagger!
If you mess with us, you'll get blasted!
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Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

Chenna vaannaa from Appu VI Std is an energetic yet emotionally charged Chennai Gaana song that captures the spirit, resilience, and struggles of the working-class people of Chennai. The opening sections celebrate the warm, inclusive, and egalitarian nature of the city street culture where class barriers do not matter, inviting everyone to enjoy life through beat, dance, and togetherness.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Iyaibu (End Rhyme)

Vaa hey poda bigilu / Podadha civilu

The rhyming of 'bigilu' (whistle) and 'civilu' (civilized/subdued) creates rhythmic momentum characteristic of North Chennai Gaana songs.

Code-Mixing / Madras Baashai

Un life um synck aagumna

Seamlessly blending English terms ('life', 'sync') with local Tamil verb endings ('aagumna') to reflect authentic urban slang.

Ethirpaadhu (Antithesis)

Avaa melannaalu / Ivaa keezhanaalu

Juxtaposing 'melannaalu' (high status) against 'keezhanaalu' (low status) to emphasize equality and rejection of social discrimination.

Metaphor / Onomatopoeia

Adangaadha thimilu / Nee vachukinaa aava dumeelu

Comparing Chennai Tamil's attitude to an untamed bull's hump ('thimilu') and using 'dumeelu' (blast/explosion) to describe the reaction to provoking it.

Did you know?

Trivia

The song is rendered by Anthony Dasan, one of Tamil cinema's most prominent folk and Gaana singers. The lyrics heavily incorporate 'Madras Baashai', the distinct slang dialect spoken in Chennai, blending Tamil with English loanwords.

Keep listening

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