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Kunguma Chimil album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Nilavu Thoongum Neram

From Kunguma Chimil · 1985

Lyricist
Vaali
Singers
S. Janaki, S. P. Balasubrahmanyam
Music director
Ilayaraja
Movie name
Kunguma Chimil
Movie release year
1985
Lyrics added on
27 Jul 2018

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Nilavu thoongum neram
Ninaivu thoongidathu
Female :Iravu thoonginaalum
Uravu thoongidathu
Idhu oru thodar kathai
Female :Dhinam dhinam valar pirai
Male :Nilavu thoongum neram
Naangu kannil indru
Oru kaatchiyaanathae
Female :Vaanam kaatru boomi
Ivai saatchiyaanathae
Naan unnai paarthathu
Poorva jenma bantham
Female :Neenda naal ninaivilae
Vaazhum indha sontham
Naan ini nee..
Female :Nee ini naan
Male:Vaazhvom vaa kannae
Nilavu thoongum neram
Ninaivu thoongidathu
Iravu thoonginaalum
Uravu thoongidathu
Idhu oru thodar kathai
Dhinam dhinam valar pirai
Female :Nilavu thoongum neram…
Geethai pola kaadhal
Miga punithamaanathu
Female :Kothai nenjil aadum intha
Siluvai pondrathu
Vaazhvilum thaazhvilum
Vilagidaatha nesam
Male :Vaalibam thendralaai
Endrum ingu veesum
Yen mayakkam…..
Male :Yen thayakkam
Female :Kannaa vaa ingae…
Nilavu thoongum neram
Ninaivu thoongidathu
Female :Iravu thoonginaalum
Uravu thoongidathu
Idhu oru thodar kathai
Female :Dhinam dhinam valar pirai
Male & Female :
Nilavu thoongum neram
Ninaivu thoongidathu…
When the moon goes to sleep,
Memories never sleep.
Even if the night falls asleep,
Our bond never sleeps.
This is a never-ending story,
A crescent moon growing day by day.
When the moon goes to sleep...
Today, between our four eyes,
A single vision has appeared.
The sky, the wind, and the earth
Have all become witnesses to us.
My finding you
Is a bond from a past life.
In our lasting memories,
This togetherness will live forever.
From now on, I am you...
From now on, you are me.
Come, my darling, let us live as one.
When the moon goes to sleep,
Memories never sleep.
Even if the night falls asleep,
Our bond never sleeps.
This is a never-ending story,
A crescent moon growing day by day.
When the moon goes to sleep...
Like the sacred Gita, love
Is deeply pure and divine.
It is like the cross that sways
Upon a woman's chest.
Through every high and low of life,
This love will never drift away.
Our youth, like a gentle breeze,
Will forever blow right here.
Why this sweet confusion?
Why this hesitation?
Come here to me, my love...
When the moon goes to sleep,
Memories never sleep.
Even if the night falls asleep,
Our bond never sleeps.
This is a never-ending story,
A crescent moon growing day by day.
[Both]
When the moon goes to sleep,
Memories never sleep...
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Female
Male
Male
Female
Female
Male
Male

Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

This romantic duet expresses the eternal and sacred nature of love between two soulmates. The lovers reflect on how their connection transcends night, sleep, and time itself, viewing their romance as a continuous story that grows deeper like a waxing moon. Nature itself—the sky, wind, and earth—stands witness to a destiny rooted in past lifetimes. Comparing love to sacred scriptures like the Bhagavad Gita and holy symbols like the Cross, the song highlights the solemnity, sacrifice, and divinity within true devotion. The lovers shed their individual identities to become one entity, pledging eternal togetherness through all life's ups and downs.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Monai (First-letter Alliteration)

Nilavu thoongum neram / Ninaivu thoongidathu

Both lines begin with the sound 'Ni' (Nilavu, Ninaivu), creating an alliterative rhythmic flow.

Ethugai (Second-letter Rhyme)

Iravu thoonginaalum / Uravu thoongidathu

The second consonant 'ra' (ra) is identical in both 'Iravu' and 'Uravu'.

Simile (Uvamai Ani)

Geethai pola kaadhal / Siluvai pondrathu

Love is explicitly compared to the Gita ('pola') and to a cross ('pondrathu'), emphasizing its sacred and self-sacrificing nature.

Metaphor

Dhinam dhinam valar pirai

The growing affection between the lovers is metaphorically equated to a waxing moon ('valar pirai').

Keep listening

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