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Isaimozhi
Lyrics & meaning

Maalaiyile Aarumani

From Airport · 1993

Lyricist
Pazhani Bharathi
Singer
S. P. Balasubrahmanyam
Music director
S. P. Venkatesh
Details
Airport1993

Lyrics & meaning

Tanglish lyrics English translation
Male
Maalaiyilae aaru maniSix o'clock in the evening
Saalaiyilae moodu paniDense fog on the road
Jannal oram nindruStanding by the edge of the window
Avan paarkkindraanHe is watching
Male
Ennennavo sinthanaikalVarious endless thoughts
Engengeyo karpanaigalImaginations wandering far and wide
Avan nenjil nooru sumaigalA hundred burdens in his heart
Male
Maalaiyilae aaru maniSix o'clock in the evening
Saalaiyilae moodu paniDense fog on the road
Male
Saayangaalaththil koodu thirumpaReturning to their nests in the evening
Thavikkum naarai koottangalFlocks of storks yearning to reach home
Dhisai naangum soozhnthu nindrathaeSurrounding from all four directions
Mega moottangalGathering dense clouds
Male
Merkku vaanaththil veyyil maraiyaAs sunlight disappears in the western sky
Mayangum sooryagandhiyinThe fading sunflower
Avai soodum karuppu aadaiyoAre the evening twilight darkness
Maalai karukkalkalThe black garments worn by them?
Male
Iyarkkai muzhuthum idhupolWhy is there sorrow like this
Yaen sogangalThroughout all of nature?
Male
Maalaiyilae aaru maniSix o'clock in the evening
Saalaiyilae moodu paniDense fog on the road
Jannal oram nindruStanding by the edge of the window
Avan paarkkindraanHe is watching
Male
Ennennavo sinthanaikalVarious endless thoughts
Engengeyo karpanaigalImaginations wandering far and wide
Avan nenjil nooru sumaigalA hundred burdens in his heart
Male
Maalaiyilae aaru maniSix o'clock in the evening
Saalaiyilae moodu paniDense fog on the road
Male
Bhoomi pennukkuFor the earth as a woman
Imaigal polavaeJust like her eyelashes
Pachai vanna pulveliIs the green expanse of grass
Neengaatha yaekkam ennavoWhat is this persistent longing
Angum neerthuliThat leaves a drop of dew there too?
Male
Pookkal thaangidum marangal koodaEven the trees that carry flowers
Padikkum mouna raagangalRecite silent melodies
Yaaringu kaana koodumoWho here can ever perceive
Verin thaagangalThe thirst of the deep root?
Male
Manathil vilaiyumGrowing within the mind
Mayakkam oraayiramA thousand lingering illusions
Male
Maalaiyilae aaru maniSix o'clock in the evening
Saalaiyilae moodu paniDense fog on the road
Jannal oram nindruStanding by the edge of the window
Avan paarkkindraanHe is watching
Male
Ennennavo sinthanaikalVarious endless thoughts
Engengeyo karpanaigalImaginations wandering far and wide
Avan nenjil nooru sumaigalA hundred burdens in his heart
Male
Maalaiyilae aaru maniSix o'clock in the evening
Saalaiyilae moodu paniDense fog on the road

Beyond the translation

Song interpretation

'Maalaiyilae Aaru Mani' from the film Airport (1993) is a melancholic and reflective song rendered by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam with music composed by S. P. Venkatesh and lyrics penned by Pazhani Bharathi. The song captures a protagonist standing quietly by a window at dusk, burdened by heavy thoughts and unspoken emotional weights. As twilight sets in, he observes the natural world around him—flocks of birds returning home, darkening clouds, wilting sunflowers, dew-covered grass, and silent trees—projecting his inner melancholy onto the canvas of nature. Through evocative imagery, the song explores themes of existential angst, unfulfilled longing, deep-seated emotional pain ('the thirst of the root'), and the silent sorrows shared between man and nature at the turn of evening.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Rhyme (Edhugai)

Maalaiyilae aaru mani / Saalaiyilae moodu pani

Repetition of second consonant sound in adjacent lines like 'Maalaiyilae' and 'Saalaiyilae'.

Personification & Simile (Uvamai)

Bhoomi pennukku / Imaigal polavae / Pachai vanna pulveli

Comparing the green grassland to the delicate eyelashes of Mother Earth with dewdrops acting as tears of longing.

Metaphor (Uruvagaimai)

Yaaringu kaana koodumo / Verin thaagangal

Attributing deep emotional thirst to the invisible roots of a tree as a metaphor for hidden human pain.

Personification

Pookkal thaangidum marangal kooda / Padikkum mouna raagangal

Attributing human action to nature where trees are said to sing or read 'silent melodies'.

Did you know?

Trivia

'Airport' (1993) features music by S. P. Venkatesh, a prominent composer in Malayalam cinema who composed for selected Tamil projects. Lyricist Pazhani Bharathi's poetic imagery in this track received critical appreciation for its rich Tamil literary nuances and melancholic nature metaphors.

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