- Lyricist
- Kambadasan
- Singer
- A. M. Raja
- Music director
- Shankar Jaikishan
- Movie name
- Avan (1953)
- Movie release year
- 1953
- Lyrics added on
- 2 Apr 2025
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
This song reflects on the transient and fragile nature of human life and youth, comparing them to a sudden flash of lightning and a short-lived rainbow. The protagonist embarks on a perilous, lonely journey in search of love, traversing darkness and stormy paths that symbolize life's severe trials. Leaving behind the comfort of home, the traveler faces despair, blindness caused by metaphorical darkness, and deep heartbreak, emphasizing the inevitable sorrows embedded within human destiny.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Simile (Upamai)
“Minnal polaagumintha vaazhkkaiyae”
Compares human life to fleeting lightning ('Minnal pol') to illustrate transience.
Simile (Upamai)
“Vaan vil polumae ilamaiyaanathae aam”
Compares youth to a rainbow ('Vaan vil polumae') highlighting its brief beauty.
Metaphor (Uruvagamm)
“Soozhnththu maalai engilum paalai”
Describes the surrounding evening environment as a desolate desert ('paalai') representing loneliness.
Repetition / Emphasis (Adukkuthodar)
“Vizhunthu vidaathae vizhunthuvidaathae…”
Repeats 'vizhunthu vidaathae' to intensify the warning against giving up or falling on the treacherous journey.
Consonance / Alliteration (Moni/Ethirai)
“Thaai manai vitae thaabamae pattae”
The rhythmic repetition of the 'th' sound ('Thaai', 'thaabamae', 'Thani', 'Thadai') creates a melancholic cadence.
Did you know?
Trivia
The film 'Avan' (1953) is the Tamil dubbed version of the iconic Hindi classic 'Awaara' (1951), directed by Raj Kapoor. The legendary Shankar-Jaikishan composed the soundtrack, and the Tamil lyrics were translated and penned by poet Kambadasan.
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