Skip to content
Isaimozhi
Kali Kaalam album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Kadhal Illamal

From Kali Kaalam · 1992

Lyricist
Panchu Arunachalam
Singers
Swarnalatha, Mano
Music director
Ilayaraja
Movie name
Kali Kaalam
Movie release year
1992
Lyrics added on
15 Jan 2019

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Kaadhal illaamal vaazhvil
Ennaalum inbam illaiyae
Female :Aan pen endraalae
Aasai kollaamal ulagam illaiyae
Ilamai enbadhae inimai
Chorus :Hoohoo
Male :Inimai illaiyael kodumai
Chorus :Hoo
Male :Adhai rasithu vaazhvadhae
Perumai purindhadhaa haa…
Kaadhal illaamal vaazhvil
Ennaalum inbam illaiyae
Aan pen endraalae
Aasai kollaamal ulagam illaiyae
Ninaitha sugangalai anubavi
Adhu ilamai kavidhaiyin pallavi
Chorus :Hoii
Male :Anaithu rasippadhil aanandham
Adhil adangi rusippadhu perinbam
Chorus :Hoi
Aangal illaamal pen yedhu
Pengal illaamal aan yedhu
Oruvar oruvaraai pirandhomae
Iruvar oruvaraai inaindhomae
Neram kaalangal serugindra podhu
Inbam dhoora pogumo kanmani
Kaadhal illaamal vaazhvil
Ennaalum inbam illaiyae
Male :Aan pen endraalae
Aasai kollaamal ulagam illaiyae
Ilamai enbadhae inimai
Chorus :Hoohoo
Female :Inimai illaiyael kodumai
Chorus :Hoo
Female :Adhai rasithu vaazhvadhae
Perumai purindhadhaa haa…
Kaadhal illaamal vaazhvil
Ennaalum inbam illaiyae
Aan pen endraalae
Aasai kollaamal ulagam illaiyae
Oruthan oruthiyai ninaippadhu
Andha oruthi oruvanai rasippadhum
Chorus :Hoi
Female :Iyarkkai koduthu vaitha seedhanam
Idhai marandhu povadhenna madathanam
Chorus :Hoi
Pookkal illaamal kaaikkaadhu
Megam illaamal neer yedhu
Paravai pola naam parappomae
Kanavil dhinam dhinam midhappomae
Neram kaalangal serugindra podhu
Inbam dhoora pogumo kanmani
Kaadhal illaamal vaazhvil
Ennaalum inbam illaiyae
Female :Aan pen endraalae
Aasai kollaamal ulagam illaiyae
Ilamai enbadhae inimai
Chorus :Hoohoo
Male :Inimai illaiyael kodumai
Chorus :Hoo
Male :Adhai rasithu vaazhvadhae
Perumai purindhadhaa haa…
Kaadhal illaamal vaazhvil
Ennaalum inbam illaiyae
Aan pen endraalae
Aasai kollaamal ulagam illaiyae
Without love in life,
there is no joy on any day.
Female: Where there are men and women,
the world cannot exist without desire.
Youth itself is sweetness.
Chorus: Hoo hoo
Male: Without that sweetness, it is misery.
Chorus: Hoo
Male: To enjoy it and live
is true pride, do you understand? Ha...
Without love in life,
there is no joy on any day.
Where there are men and women,
the world cannot exist without desire.
Enjoy the pleasures you desire,
for that is the opening line of youth's song.
Chorus: Hoy
Male: There is happiness in embracing and loving,
and supreme joy in giving in to it.
Chorus: Hoy
Without men, where is woman?
Without women, where is man?
We were born as two separate people,
yet the two of us have united as one.
When the right time and moments come together,
will happiness ever stay far away, my dear?
Without love in life,
there is no joy on any day.
Male: Where there are men and women,
the world cannot exist without desire.
Youth itself is sweetness.
Chorus: Hoo hoo
Female: Without that sweetness, it is misery.
Chorus: Hoo
Female: To enjoy it and live
is true pride, do you understand? Ha...
Without love in life,
there is no joy on any day.
Where there are men and women,
the world cannot exist without desire.
A man yearning for a woman,
and that woman admiring the man,
Chorus: Hoy
Female: is a gift blessed by nature.
What foolishness it is to forget this!
Chorus: Hoy
Without flowers, there is no fruit.
Without clouds, where is rain?
Let us fly like birds,
and float in dreams day after day.
When the right time and moments come together,
will happiness ever stay far away, my dear?
Without love in life,
there is no joy on any day.
Female: Where there are men and women,
the world cannot exist without desire.
Youth itself is sweetness.
Chorus: Hoo hoo
Male: Without that sweetness, it is misery.
Chorus: Hoo
Male: To enjoy it and live
is true pride, do you understand? Ha...
Without love in life,
there is no joy on any day.
Where there are men and women,
the world cannot exist without desire.
Male
Male
Chorus
Female
Female
Male
Male
Female
Female
Chorus
Male
Male
Female
Male
Male
Male
Chorus

Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

Kaadhal illaamal vaazhvil from the 1992 film Kali Kaalam is a rhythmic celebration of romance, youth, and mutual affection between partners. Lyricist Panchu Arunachalam expresses how human existence acquires genuine pleasure only through love and shared passion, characterizing desire as a fundamental force that sustains the world. Through lively back-and-forth exchanges, the song draws parallels between romantic harmony and natural phenomena—such as flowers yielding fruit or clouds providing rain. It encourages living in the moment, embracing youthful joy as poetry, and cherishing love as a precious dowry gifted by nature itself.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Metaphor (Uruvagam)

“Adhu ilamai kavidhaiyin pallavi”

Compares youth's pleasures to the 'pallavi' (opening refrain) of a poem/song.

Analogy / Parallelism

“Pookkal illaamal kaaikkaadhu / Megam illaamal neer yedhu”

Uses natural dependencies (flowers/fruit, clouds/rain) to illustrate the essential interdependence of man and woman.

Initial Alliteration (Monai)

“Anaithu rasippadhil aanandham / Adhil adangi rusippadhu perinbam”

Repetition of the initial vowel sound 'A' creating rhythmic flow across lines.

Rhetorical Question

“Aangal illaamal pen yedhu / Pengal illaamal aan yedhu”

Asks rhetorical questions to emphasize the essential nature of romantic unity.

Did you know?

Trivia

Panchu Arunachalam was a prolific Tamil screenwriter, lyricist, and producer responsible for reinventing commercial Tamil cinema in the late 1970s and 1980s. The film 'Kali Kaalam' (1992) starred standard 90s character actors and featured music composed by legendary singer-composer S. P. Balasubrahmanyam.

Keep listening

Songs with a similar feeling

Malar Konda Pongodi1979
Kavari MaanAttractionDesire
Vayasu Vantha2002
En Mana VaanilYouthCelebratory
Mosalo Mosalu2022
The LegendYouthCelebratory
Thullum Ilamai1984
Anbe Odi VaaYouthCelebratory
Inidhu Inidhu2010
Inidhu InidhuYouthCelebratory
Usukko Usakkaiya1993
Enga ThambiYouthCelebratory

From the same album

More songs from Kali Kaalam

View album
Meendum Vanthatho1992
Kali KaalamDevotional
Manithan Pogum1992
Kali KaalamContemplative
Kalam Kalikalam1992
Kali KaalamMelancholic

Spot an issue?

Help us improve the lyrics or English translation.