- Lyricist
- A. Maruthakasi
- Singers
- Seerkazhi Govindarajan, K. Jamunarani
- Music director
- Vishwanathan-Ramamoorthy
- Movie name
- Raja Malaiya Simman
- Movie release year
- 1959
- Lyrics added on
- 15 Dec 2021
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
This humorous folk song from Raja Malaiya Simman (1959) uses an allegorical tale of birds and insects to describe the process of falling in love and getting married. Written in traditional rhythmic verse by A. Maruthakasi, it tells the story of a sparrow getting trapped in a net, receiving help from a red-legged stork, being watched by a grinning caterpillar, and eventually undergoing full Tamil wedding rituals including applying turmeric, putting on garlands, erecting a wedding canopy (pandal), hosting a feast (pandhi), and tying the sacred thread (thaali) accompanied by celebratory drumbeats.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Personification & Metaphor
“Vannathi kuruvi vandhu valaiyil maatikiduchaam”
Birds and insects (sparrow, stork, caterpillar) are endowed with human traits and participate in human wedding rituals as an allegory for romantic entrapment and marriage.
Onomatopoeia (Irattai Kilavi / Oli Kurippu)
“Dum dum dum dum dum dum dum dum”
'Dum dum dum' mimics the rhythmic percussion sound of wedding melam (drums) playing during the auspicious moment of tying the thaali.
Monai (Initial Alliteration / Rhyme)
“Pandhal pottukichaam / Pandhi vechikichaam”
Use of the initial 'P' sound ('Pandhal', 'Pandhi') creates a musical, rhythmic pattern in folk narrative style.
Did you know?
Trivia
'Raja Malaiya Simman' (1959) was a action adventure film directed by T. R. Sundaram featuring Sivaji Ganesan. Composed by Viswanathan-Ramamoorthy, this song brings alive ancient Tamil folk storytelling tropes through energetic playback singing by Seerkazhi Govindarajan and K. Jamunarani.
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