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Isaimozhi
Lyrics & meaning

Kathadi

From Sembian Madhevi · 2024

Lyricist
Va. Karuppan
Singers
V. V. Prasanna, Alka Ajith
Music director
Loga Pathmanaban
Details
Sembian Madhevi2024

Lyrics & meaning

Tanglish lyrics English translation
Male
Kaathadi kannukullaInside eyes like a kite
Kekkaama suzhala vittaYou made them spin without asking
Female :Kannadi manasu kullaFemale: Inside a glass-like heart
Kaadhalathan sorugi puttaYou went and tucked love inside
Male
Enakulla nee irunthuWith you residing inside me
Aasaiya kootaIncreasing my desires
Kirukka naa kidanthu aadureneI lie around and dance like a crazy person
Female :Thimira neeyum vanthuFemale: Coming with attitude
Kaadhala sollaTo express your love
Anaiya naa udanju odureneI broke like a dam and ran away
Male
Aagasam varudaTo touch the sky
Rendu perum povom vaaCome, let us both go
Female :Vethalam adam piduchuFemale: Like a stubborn ghost
Vendiyatha eduthukittaTaking whatever it desired
Male
Pattampoochi paathuLooking at the butterfly
Vetkapatu pochuIt felt bashful
Thekku puyal kaathuThe southern stormy wind
Thendral ena aachuTurned into a soft breeze
Female
Vathi kuchi meesaWith a matchstick mustache
Patcha kuthi pesaSpeaking like a green tattoo
Aththa sodu aasaDesire for the maternal cousin's match
Yetti yetti paakaPeeking and gazing from afar
Male
Naa paranthenI flew away
Rekka yethum illamaWithout needing any wings
En usuru unna suthutheMy soul keeps revolving around you
Female :Naan irukenFemale: I am right here
Kannu rendum moodamaWithout closing my eyes
Un nenapu kuthu kollutheYour thoughts prick and kill me
Male
Thaavura thalukkuraLeaping and swaying
Satham yethum illamaWithout making any noise
Female :Neevura nirapuraFemale: Caressing and filling
Enna yethum sollamaWithout telling me anything
Male
Ulla padi naanumDeep inside, I too
Puthi kettu ponenLost my sound judgment
Un nenapu yeraAs your memory mounted
Vella katti aanenI melted into a sweet block of jaggery
Female
Kalli chedi melaUpon a dry cactus plant
Malli poo pookaCausing a jasmine flower to bloom
Salli kalla neeyumEven a worthless pebble, you
Seppu sela aakaSculpted into a precious copper idol
Male
KathirunthenI was waiting
Thondakuli kaayaamaWithout my throat drying up
Nee enaiyum nenjil vaikiraYou keep me safe inside your heart
Female :Nee kidacha inthaFemale: Having gained you, this
Jenmem theeratheSingle lifetime is not enough
Thaai manasa vanthu nikkiraYou stand here possessing a mother's heart
Male
Sekura sithaikiraGathering and breaking
Setha patu pogamaWithout getting destroyed completely
Female :Nokkura nothikiraFemale: Glancing and gently coaxing
Aavi kooda nogamaWithout hurting even my inner spirit

Beyond the translation

Song interpretation

The song from 'Sembian Madhevi' is an intimate, rustic love duet where two lovers describe the overwhelming impact love has had on their lives. Through vivid rural Tamil metaphors, they explain how affection transformed their raw emotions into deep devotion—comparing love's power to a jasmine blooming on a prickly cactus, a fierce southern tempest turning into a mild breeze, and an ordinary stone being carved into a sacred idol. Both characters express a sense of total surrender and joy. The male voice describes losing his senses and floating weightlessly in her love, while the female voice marvels at the maternal warmth and absolute tenderness her partner brings into her existence.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Metaphor (Uruvagamaip Porul)

Kalli chedi mela / Malli poo pooka

The lyrics compare an impossible or miraculous transformation of the heart to a delicate jasmine blooming on a harsh cactus plant ('Kalli chedi mela / Malli poo pooka').

Hyperbole (Uyarvu Navortchi)

Thekku puyal kaathu / Thendral ena aachu

Exaggeration of love's transformative effect, stating that a violent southern storm was tamed into a soft, calming breeze.

Ethukai (Second-letter Rhyme)

Sekura sithaikira / Nokkura nothikira

Use of matching second consonants across adjacent line pairs, such as 'Sekura' and 'Sithaikira', or 'Nokkura' and 'Nothikira', to create rhythm.

Did you know?

Trivia

'Sembian Madhevi' (2024) features music composed by Loga Pathmanaban with lyrics written by Va. Karuppan. Sung by V. V. Prasanna and Alka Ajith, the track heavily utilizes regional folk motifs and metaphors rooted in rural Tamil culture.

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