- Lyricist
- Kannadasan
- Singers
- T. M. Soundararajan, P. Susheela
- Music director
- Vishwanathan-Ramamoorthy
- Movie name
- Paarthaal Pasi Theerum
- Movie release year
- 1962
- Lyrics added on
- 18 Apr 2019
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
This classic romantic duet explores the philosophical relationship between cause and effect through natural and human metaphors. The lovers engage in a playful lyrical tender inquiry: Does the swaying of a branch cause the wind to blow, or does the wind cause the branch to sway? Does the moon appear because the flower blossoms, or does the flower bloom because of the moon? Through these interconnected natural phenomena—song and rhythm, emotion and melody, vision and eyes, youth and desire, words and lips—Kannadasan beautifully questions the origin of love and human connection.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Antimetabole / Chiasmus (Paradoxical Cause-Effect Inversion)
“Kodi asaindhadhum Kaattru vandhadhaa / Kaattru vandhadhum Kodi asaindhadhaa”
The song repeatedly flips the order of cause and effect between two related concepts to highlight their deep interdependence.
Emona (Anaphora and Rhyming Parallelism)
“Kaadhal enbadhaa / Paasam enbadhaa / Karunai enbadhaa / Urimai enbadhaa”
Repetitive structures creating a rhythmic cadence through continuous questioning using the Tamil interrogative suffix '-aa'.
Ethukai (Second Letter Rhyme)
“Paadal vandhadhum / Thaalam vandhadhaa”
Tamil poetic rhyme where the second letter of consecutive lines matches (e.g., Kodi / Nilavu / Paadal).
Did you know?
Trivia
Composed by Viswanathan-Ramamoorthy for the 1962 film 'Paarthaal Pasi Theerum', this song features legendary singers T. M. Soundararajan and P. Susheela. It remains one of Kannadasan's most iconic songs demonstrating his philosophical mastery in simple romantic lyricism.
Keep listening
Songs with a similar feeling
From the same album
More songs from Paarthaal Pasi Theerum
View albumSpot an issue?
Help us improve the lyrics or English translation.