- Lyricist
- Pattukkottai Kalyanasundram
- Singer
- P. Susheela
- Music director
- T. Chalapathi Rao
- Movie name
- Punar Jenmam
- Movie release year
- 1961
- Lyrics added on
- 17 Feb 2025
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
Inba Kaaviyam Poithaano from Punar Jenmam (1961) is a deeply moving lament about heartbreak, shattered expectations, and grief. The song depicts a woman processing the painful collapse of her love story. She compares her cherished feelings to a fragile vessel of honey shattered by an unexpected stone, fearing that all her hopes and sweet dreams have been completely wasted. Pattukkottai Kalyanasundaram uses evocative natural imagery, such as a dark, cloud-covered sky and a fish writhing out of water on the dry shore, to illustrate her intense helplessness and emotional agony. Overwhelmed by fate, she questions whether joy is merely an illusion and wonders if she will ever find clarity or peace again. P. Susheela's expressive vocal rendition elevates this poignant reflection on destiny and lost love.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Simile (Uvamai)
“Kannadi paathirathil Kalleripattadhu pol”
Compares her fragile thoughts being shattered to a glass vessel hit by a thrown stone.
Metaphor (Uruvagamm)
“En ennamennum thaen kalasam”
Directly metaphorizes her heart's thoughts as a pot filled with honey ('thaen kalasam').
Rhetorical Question
“Inba kaaviyam poithaano / Sugam kaanal neer thaana”
Expresses disbelief and sorrow by questioning whether the epic of happiness was false and joy is just a mirage.
Simile (Uvamai)
“Karai yeriya meen polae”
Compares her helpless, suffering state to a fish washed up on the dry shore.
Did you know?
Trivia
Pattukkottai Kalyanasundaram was renowned for combining deeply emotional poetry with social commentary and philosophy. Punar Jenmam (1961), directed by C. V. Ranganatha Das, featured Sivaji Ganesan and Padmini. This iconic sad solo performed by P. Susheela is widely recognized as one of the finest melancholic compositions in early Tamil cinema.
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