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Priyam album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Oru Kelvi Unnai Ketkiraen

From Priyam · 1996

Lyricist
Vairamuthu
Singers
P. Unnikrishnan, Sujatha
Music director
Vidyasagar
Movie name
Priyam
Movie release year
1996
Lyrics added on
27 Oct 2021

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Aa….aa…..aa….aa…..aa….
Aah…..aah…..aah….aa….aa….
Oru kelvi unnai ketkiraen
Nee sol anbe
Udal uyirai thalli vaazhumaa
Nee sol anbe
Vaal kondu aruththaalum
Piriyaathu antha vaanam
Nee ennai veruththaalum
Vilagaathu intha nesam
Oru kelvi unnai ketkiraen
Nee sol anbe
Udal uyirai thalli vaazhumaa
Nee sol anbe
………………..
Gangai indri dhesam vaazhalaam ooo….
Kaatrillaamal jeevan vaazhumaa
Female :Netrillaamal indru thondralaam ooo….
Nee illamal vaazhvu thondrumaa
Vaanillaamal kizhakkil endrum
Udhayamillai kadhali
Female :Nee illamal en udambil
Idhayamillai kadhalaa
Male :Anbe….anbe….anbe….
Oru kelvi unnai ketkiraen
Nee sol anbe
Udal uyirai thalli vaazhumaa
Nee sol anbe
Rendu kiligal kadhal kolgaiyil
Adhai kandu yaarum pirippathillaiyae
Male :Aanum pennum kadhal kolgaiyil
Indha ooril yaarum poruppathillaiyae
Aanavangal pirihthapothum
Anaikkavendum devanae
Male :Ranuvangal thaduththapothum
Thazhuvi kolvom jeevanae
Female :Anbe….anbe….anbe….
Oru kelvi unnai ketkiraen
Nee sol anbe
Udal uyirai thalli vaazhumaa
Nee sol anbe
Vaal kondu aruththaalum
Piriyaathu antha vaanam
Female :Nee ennai veruththaalum
Vilagaathu intha nesam
Oru kelvi unnai ketkiraen
Nee sol anbe
Female :Udal uyirai thalli vaazhumaa
Nee sol anbe
Aa... aa... aa... aa... aa...
Aah... aah... aah... aa... aa...
I ask you a question,
Tell me, my love.
Can a body live without its soul?
Tell me, my love.
Even if cut with a sword,
the sky will never split apart.
Even if you hate me,
this love will never fade away.
I ask you a question,
Tell me, my love.
Can a body live without its soul?
Tell me, my love.
...
A land may live without the Ganga River, oh...
but can a life survive without air?
Today might dawn without a yesterday, oh...
but can life exist without you?
Without the sky in the east,
there is no sunrise, my love.
Without you inside my body,
there is no heart, my love.
My love... my love... my love...
I ask you a question,
Tell me, my love.
Can a body live without its soul?
Tell me, my love.
When two parrots fall in love,
no one tries to tear them apart.
When a man and a woman fall in love,
no one in this town can stand it.
Even if pride tears us apart,
you must hold me close, my beloved.
Even if armies block our way,
we will embrace each other, my life.
My love... my love... my love...
I ask you a question,
Tell me, my love.
Can a body live without its soul?
Tell me, my love.
Even if cut with a sword,
that sky will never split apart.
Even if you hate me,
this love will never fade away.
I ask you a question,
Tell me, my love.
Can a body live without its soul?
Tell me, my love.
Female
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Female
Female
Female
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Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

'Oru Kelvi Unnai Ketkiraen' from the film Priyam (1996) is a deeply romantic duet portraying the inseparable bond between two lovers. Through poignant metaphors—comparing their relationship to body and soul, the sky that cannot be sliced by a sword, and living without air—the song establishes love as an essential force of life itself.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Metaphor (Uvamai)

Udal uyirai thalli vaazhumaa

Compares the lovers' relationship to the inseparable dynamic between the physical body (udal) and the life force/soul (uyir).

Hyperbole & Imagery

Vaal kondu aruththaalum piriyaathu antha vaanam

Uses the impossible visual of cutting the sky with a sword to emphasize that no external force can tear their bond apart.

Iyaipu (End Rhyme)

Vaal kondu aruththaalum / Nee ennai veruththaalum

The lines end with rhyming suffixes ('aruththaalum' and 'veruththaalum') creating a melodic rhythmic flow.

Monai (First-letter Alliteration)

Udal uyirai thalli vaazhumaa

The repetition of the initial vowel 'U' in 'Udal' and 'Uyirai' adds subtle phonetic harmony.

Did you know?

Trivia

The music for the 1996 film 'Priyam' was composed by Vidyasagar. The track 'Oru Kelvi Unnai Ketkiraen' was written by the acclaimed lyricist Vairamuthu and sung by P. Unnikrishnan and Sujatha Mohan.

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