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Raja Mukthi album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Machchi Un Mugatthil Meesaiyai Kaanom

From Raja Mukthi · 1948

Lyricist
Papanasam Sivan
Singers
P. G. Venkatesan, P. Bhanumathi
Music director
C. R. Subbaraman
Movie name
Raja Mukthi
Movie release year
1948
Lyrics added on
24 Apr 2020

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Machi unn mugathil
Meesayai kaanom
Unga aiyaa unnaiyae
Aanaathaan pettraanaa
Mugathai paartthae
Uyiraiyae vidugiraayae
Uyiraiyae vidugiraayae andha
Muttaal pasangalai nee yaeikka
Vaendaamaa namma
Yaeikka vaendaamaa
Athaan unn mugathil
Meesayai kaanom
Ungammaa unnaiyae
Pennaathaan pettraalaa
Naan paarthadhumillai
Unnai pola samathu
Unnai pola samathu kozhi
Koodaiyai moodaapponaal
Vittu povaana
Nammai vittu povaana
Machi unn mugathil
Meesayai kaanom
Unga aiyaa unnaiyae
Aanaathaan pettraanaa
Pattai naamakkaara aal paavam
Andha pattai naama
Kattuchottril nee
Kaiyai vaikkalaamaa
Kaiyai vaikkalaamaa
Arubadhu sippikku aasaippadaadhae
Ellaan theriyundee
Adiyae sokkammaa
Yaar enna seiyalaam
Aasai thaan aasai thaan
Mosam seiya ponaal
Pizhaippaedhathaan vayittru
Pizhaippaedhathaan
Hey friend, on your face
there is no moustache to be seen!
Did your father
really give birth to you as a man?
Just by looking at a face,
you lose your very heart!
You swoon away! Shouldn't you
trick those foolish boys?
Shouldn't we
trick them?
Is that why on your face
there is no moustache?
Did your mother
give birth to you as a woman?
I have never seen
anyone as clever as you,
as clever as you! When a chicken
is covered with a basket,
will it ever escape?
Will it get away from us?
Hey friend, on your face
there is no moustache!
Did your father
really give birth to you as a man?
That man with the holy forehead mark (pattai namam) is pitiful,
that man with the holy forehead mark!
Into his packed meal,
should you stick your hand?
Should you stick your hand?
Do not be greedy for sixty cowrie shells!
I know everything,
hey Sokkamma!
What can anyone do?
Desire is desire, after all!
If one turns to trickery,
it is only to survive,
only to feed the stomach!
Male
Female
Male
Male
Female
Male
Female

Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

This playful folk song from 'Raja Mukthi' (1948) uses lighthearted banter and satire to discuss disguise, trickery, and moral boundaries. The singer teases a companion about their clean-shaven or feminine appearance, jokingly asking whether their parents raised them as a boy or a girl while acknowledging their cunning ability to fool gullible young men.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Rhetorical Question (Vinaa)

Unga aiyaa unnaiyae Aanaathaan pettraanaa

Questions like 'Aanaathaan pettraanaa' and 'Kaiyai vaikkalaamaa' are used not to seek answers but to express sarcasm and moral reprimand.

Metaphor (Uvamai)

Unnai pola samathu kozhi

Comparing the subject's behavior and quickness to a smart bird or hen ('samathu kozhi').

Repetition (Anaphora/Epistrophe)

Kaiyai vaikkalaamaa

Phrases like 'Uyiraiyae vidugiraayae' and 'Kaiyai vaikkalaamaa' are repeated for rhythmic emphasize in traditional folk song structure.

Did you know?

Trivia

'Raja Mukthi' (1948) featured legendary singer-actor M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar (MKT) and P. Bhanumathi. The lyrics were penned by the famed Carnatic musical maestro Papanasam Sivan, who blended classical purity with accessible folk idioms for cinema.

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