- Lyricist
- A. Maruthakasi
- Music director
- K. V. Mahadevan
- Movie name
- Panchali
- Movie release year
- 1959
- Lyrics added on
- 16 May 2025
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
This song from Panchali (1959) blends rural celebrations of harvest with moral and social reform commentary. It begins by painting a picturesque scene of golden Samba paddy fields swaying gently like dancing maidens, transitioning into the joyful bustle of harvesting on the threshing floor while acknowledging contemporary agrarian sharecropping reform laws ('Arubadhu Nappathu' / 60-40 share). Beyond agricultural joy, lyricist A. Maruthakasi weaves in timeless Tamil ethical philosophy. He urges people to keep a heart as pure as crystal water, guard personal honor like the legendary Kavari deer (which preserves its dignity at all costs), practice virtues like love and righteousness, and stand united as a society to prosper together.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Simile (Uvamai)
“Sathiraadum pengalai pol / Thangha sambha thonudhu”
Compares the swaying golden paddy stalks in the wind to graceful dancing women.
Simile (Uvamai)
“Palinghu pondra neeri pola / Manamum irukkanum”
Compares a pure and untainted human mind to crystal-clear water.
Cultural Metaphor / Classical Allusion
“Paayum kavari maanai pola / Maanam kakkanum”
Refers to the 'Kavari deer' (Kavari Maan), a classical Sangam literary motif representing high self-respect and dignity.
Assonance and Alliteration (Monai / Edhugai)
“Panbum anbum armum kondu”
Groups rhythmic moral virtues (Panbu - character, Anbu - love, Aram - righteousness) for poetic harmony.
Did you know?
Trivia
Lyricist A. Maruthakasi incorporated real socio-political commentary into this folk-inspired song. The phrase 'Pudhidhaaga vandha sattam arubadhu nappathu' refers to the Tanjore Pannaiyal Protection Act and agricultural fair-rent legislation introduced during K. Kamaraj's governance in Tamil Nadu in the 1950s, which mandated a 60-40 crop share split between tenant farmers and land owners.
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