Skip to content
Isaimozhi
Lyrics & meaning

Chittaga Malar Mottaga

From Anbukkor Anni · 1960

Lyricist
A. Maruthakasi
Singers
Jikki, Chorus
Music director
A. M. Rajah
Details
Anbukkor Anni1960

Lyrics & meaning

Tanglish lyrics English translation
Female
Sittaga malar mottaagaLike a little bird, like a blossoming flower bud,
Pudhu pattaaga ilavettagaLike a new silk, like a tender young shoot,
Pattaga ilavettagaLike silk, like a tender young shoot,
Pudhu pattaga ilavettagaLike a new silk, like a tender young shoot,
Kattaana udal palapalakkaWith a well-built body shining brightly,
Kottungadi kummi kottungadiClap your hands and dance the Kummi, girls, clap your hands!
Female
Ettaadha oru porulai kanduThere are people who yawn helplessly
Kottaavi vidum manidharunduUpon seeing an unattainable thing.
Chorus :Ettaadha oru porulai kanduChorus: There are people who yawn helplessly
Kottaavi vidum manidharunduUpon seeing an unattainable thing.
Female
Muttathanathai udhari thalliShake off foolishness and discard it,
Buthiyudanae nadakka solliTell them to act with wisdom and intelligence!
Chorus :Buthiyudanae nadakka solliChorus: Tell them to act with wisdom and intelligence!
Buthiyudanae nadakka solliTell them to act with wisdom and intelligence!
Female
Thattamaalai suthi suzhandruSpinning around like a whirling garland,
Thadhana thaana thaiyavendruDancing to the rhythm of 'Thadhana thaana thaiya',
Kattaana udal palapalakkaWith a well-built body shining brightly,
Kottungadi kummi kottungadiClap your hands and dance the Kummi, girls, clap your hands!
Female
Vithaara kadhai pesi poluthaiEngaging in vanity tales and passing time,
Veenae kazhikka koodathuOne should not waste time uselessly.
Chorus :Koodathamma koodathuChorus: Should not, dear, should not!
Adhu koodathamma koodathuThat should not be done, dear, should not!
Female
Vithaara kadhai pesi poluthaiEngaging in vanity tales and passing time,
Veenae kazhikka koodathuOne should not waste time uselessly.
Ethaal kedaikkum panamum kaasumMoney and wealth gained through deceit,
Ethanai kaalam nilathidumHow long will it truly last?
Chorus :Ethanai kaalam nilathidumChorus: How long will it last?
Adhu ethanai kaalam nilathidumHow long will that last?
Female
Nitham uzhaichi paadupattaalIf one works hard and strives diligently every day,
Nimmadhi vandhu serumendruPeace of mind will naturally come and stay.
Kattaana udal palapalakkaWith a well-built body shining brightly,
Kottungadi kummi kottungadiClap your hands and dance the Kummi, girls, clap your hands!
Female and Chorus :Kattaana udal palapalakkaFemale and Chorus: With a well-built body shining brightly,
Kottungadi kummi kottungadiClap your hands and dance the Kummi, girls, clap your hands!

Beyond the translation

Song interpretation

This vibrant Kummi folk song from the 1960 Tamil film 'Anbukkor Anni' delivers moral guidance wrapped in rhythmic celebration. Sung in a traditional village dance format, the song calls women together to clap hands, dance, and embrace vitality and good health. Through lively verses, the lyricist cautions against envying unattainable things and advises people to overcome ignorance through wisdom.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Upamai (Simile)

Sittaga malar mottaaga Pudhu pattaaga ilavettaga

Youth, enthusiasm, and beauty are compared using the 'aga' suffix to a bird (sittu), a flower bud (mottu), soft silk (pattu), and a tender shoot (ilavettu).

Iyalbu Navitchi Ani (Folk Rhythm & Onomatopoeia)

Thattamaalai suthi suzhandru Thadhana thaana thaiyavendru

Uses traditional Tamil folk beat syllables ('Thadhana thaana thaiya') to evoke the actual footwork and clapping cadence of Kummi dance.

Ethirai (Second Letter Assonance)

Ettaadha oru porulai kandu / Kottaavi vidum manidharundu

The second consonant sound matches across adjacent lines to create aesthetic rhyme ('tt' sound in Ettaadha / Kottaavi / Muttathanathai).

Did you know?

Trivia

Composed by singer-turned-music director A. M. Rajah, this song is rendered by his celebrated playback singer wife, Jikki. Lyricist A. Maruthakasi was renowned for introducing egalitarian themes and practical moral philosophy into traditional Tamil folk genres like Kummi and Oyilattam in early Tamil cinema.

Keep listening

More from Anbukkor Anni