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Isaimozhi
Writer album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Kaattuppalli

From Writer · 2021

Lyricist
Yugabharathi
Singer
Govind Vasantha
Music director
Govind Vasantha
Movie name
Writer
Movie release year
2021
Lyrics added on
28 Dec 2021

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Kutta kutta puliyamaram
Kuyiladaiyum nandhavanam
Kutta maram pattu pona
Kuyil irandum enga odum
Kutta maram pattu pona
Kuyil irandum enga odum
Vaikkapporu mathiyilae
Ponthu vacha eli irandu…
Vaika pooru pathikita
Eli irandum enga pogum
Chorus :Vaika pooru pathikita
Eli irandum enga pogum
Dhum than thana dhum than thana
Dhum thana thanathom
Kaakkarattan chedi aruga
Kannasarum kaaka onnu
Kaakkarattan kavunthuchina
Kaakka kanna enga moodum
Chorus :Kaakkarattan kavunthuchina
Kaakka kanna enga moodum…
Dhum than thana dhum than thana
Dhum thana thanathom
Thombaiyathu uchiyila
Thulli yaadum poonakutty
Thombaiyathu urunduchina
Poonakutty enga thavum
Chorus :Thombaiyathu urunduchina
Poonakutty enga thavum
Dhum than thana dhum than thana
Dhum thana thanathom
Venaathu koovalilae
Vilaiyaadum meenukunju
Koki nikira kelviyoda
Sananga kedakku keezha
Mukki ezhundhu ninna kooda
Mudiayalaiyae vaazha
Koora veetu muthathilae
Koora veetu muthathilae..ae…ae…
Koora veetu muthathilae..ae…ae…
A short little tamarind tree,
A green grove where cuckoos rest.
If that short tree withers and dies,
Where will the two cuckoos flee?
If that short tree withers and dies,
Where will the two cuckoos flee?
In the middle of a haystack,
Two mice that made a burrow...
If the haystack catches fire,
Where will the two mice go?
Chorus: If the haystack catches fire,
Where will the two mice go?
Thum than thana thum than thana
Thum thana thanathom
Beside a wild kakkarattan bush,
A crow dozes off to sleep.
If that wild bush topples over,
Where will the crow close its eyes?
Chorus: If that wild bush topples over,
Where will the crow close its eyes...
Thum than thana thum than thana
Thum thana thanathom
On top of a grain storage bin,
A little kitten jumps and plays.
If that grain bin rolls over,
Where will the kitten leap?
Chorus: If that grain bin rolls over,
Where will the kitten leap?
Thum than thana thum than thana
Thum thana thanathom
In a shallow summer puddle,
A tiny fish plays around.
With questions hanging like sharp hooks,
The helpless people lie fallen below.
Even if they strain hard to rise,
They still cannot find a way to live.
In the yard of a thatched hut,
In the yard of a thatched hut... oh...
In the yard of a thatched hut... oh...
Male
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Male
Male
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Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

The song uses simple, allegorical folk imagery of animals losing their sanctuary—cuckoos losing a tamarind tree, mice losing a burning haystack, a crow losing its bush, and a kitten losing its grain bin—to reflect the plight of marginalized human beings. It asks poignant, rhetorical questions about where the weak and vulnerable can flee when their basic systems of shelter and survival are destroyed. Toward the end, the lyricist shifts from nature allegories to the real world, portraying how oppressed people struggle endlessly under the weight of systemic injustice, unable to stay afloat despite their hard labor.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Allegory / Extended Metaphor

“Kutta maram pattu pona / Kuyil irandum enga odum”

The entire song uses vulnerable animals losing their homes as a metaphor for underprivileged people displaced by systemic oppression.

Rhetorical Question

“Eli irandum enga pogum”

Repeated questions across stanzas highlight the helplessness and lack of alternatives for the displaced characters.

Moonaiai / Initial Alliteration (Tamil Prosody)

“Thombaiyathu uchiyila / Thulli yaadum poonakutty”

Matching initial consonant sounds in consecutive words across lines, creating a rhythmic folk cadence.

Simile / Imagery

“Koki nikira kelviyoda / Sananga kedakku keezha”

Compares persistent, unanswered existential questions to a sharp fishhook ('Koki nikira kelvi').

Did you know?

Trivia

Featured in Franklin Jacob's acclaimed directorial debut 'Writer' (2021) produced by Pa. Ranjith, this song's folk arrangement by Govind Vasantha underscores the film's central theme of institutional oppression and the vulnerability of marginalized individuals within the justice system.

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