- Lyricist
- Vairamuthu
- Singer
- K. S. Chithra
- Music director
- Ilayaraja
- Movie name
- Sindhu Bhairavi
- Movie release year
- 1985
- Lyrics added on
- 10 Feb 2017
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
Naan Oru Sindhu is a deeply poignant emotional song where a child laments her lack of identity and social recognition despite having living parents. She compares her existence to a rootless, nomadic folk tune ('Kaavadi Sindhu') whose surface rhythm masks a profound inner sadness. The lyrics express the anguish of an unacknowledged child born out of complex adult relationships, denied even the basic right to call her biological mother 'Amma'. Through metaphors of uncultivated land and orphaned melodies, the singer questions fate and society's cruelty, wishing she had dissolved in the womb rather than enduring a life without an initial or family name. It stands as a powerful thematic piece about identity, innocence, and emotional isolation.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Metaphor (Urvagam)
“Naan oru sindhu kaavadi sindhu”
The singer equates herself directly to 'Kaavadi Sindhu', a folk song genre, highlighting her nomadic, unanchored, and emotionally heavy life.
Wordplay / Pun (Sleshhai)
“Paatu padicha sangadhi undu / En paatukullayum sangadhi undu kandu pidi…iii”
The word 'sangadhi' is used cleverly to mean both musical variations in Carnatic music and news/truth/facts in colloquial Tamil.
End Rhyme (Iyaibu)
“Raagam puriyavilla ulla sogam theriyavilla”
The line ends with matching sound structures ('puriyavilla' and 'theriyavilla') to enhance the melancholy rhythm.
Did you know?
Trivia
Composed by Ilaiyaraaja and rendered by K. S. Chithra with lyrics by Vairamuthu, this song won K. S. Chithra her first National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer. The composition brilliantly blends classical sensibilities with native Tamil folk structures to reflect the film's core themes.
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