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Lyrics & meaning

Paartha Nyabagam Illayo

From Puthiya Paravai · 1964

Lyricist
Kannadasan
Singer
P. Susheela
Music director
M. S. Vishwanathan
Details
Puthiya Paravai1964

Lyrics & meaning

Tanglish lyrics English translation
Female
……………………...
Female
{ Paartha{ Seeing me
Nyabagam illaiyoDo you not remember?
Paruva naadagam thollaiyo } (2)Is the drama of youth a burden? }
Vaazhntha kaalangal konjamoWere the days we lived together so few?
Maranthadhae indha nenjamoDid this heart really forget?
Female
PaarthaSeeing me
Nyabagam illaiyoDo you not remember?
Paruva naadagam thollaiyoIs the drama of youth a burden?
Female
{ Andha neela{ On the bank of that blue
Nadhi karai oramriver,
Nee nindrirunthaaiyou were standing
Anthi neram } (2)at dusk }
Female
NaanI
Paadi vanthencame singing
Oru raagam naama melody; we
Pazhagi vanthomgrew close to each other
Sila kaalamfor a brief time.
Female
PaarthaSeeing me
Nyabagam illaiyoDo you not remember?
Paruva naadagam thollaiyoIs the drama of youth a burden?
Vaazhntha kaalangal konjamoWere the days we lived together so few?
Maranthadhae indha nenjamoDid this heart really forget?
Female
Indha iravaiAsk this night,
Kel adhu sollumit will tell.
Andha nilavaiAsk that moon,
Kel adhu sollumit will tell.
Female
UnthanAsk your
Manathai kel adhuown heart, it will
Sollum naam marupaditell that we have been
Piranthadhai sollumborn again.
Female
PaarthaSeeing me
Nyabagam illaiyoDo you not remember?
Paruva naadagam thollaiyoIs the drama of youth a burden?
Female
AndruThat day,
Sendrathumas soon as you left,
Maranthaai uravaiyou forgot our bond.
Indru vanthadhaeToday there has arrived
Pudhiya paravaia new bird.
Female
EnthaIn whichever
Jenmathilum orulifetime it may be, at least
Thadavai naamonce we shall
Santhipom indha nilavaimeet under this moon.
Female
PaarthaSeeing me
Nyabagam illaiyoDo you not remember?
Paruva naadagam thollaiyoIs the drama of youth a burden?
Vaazhntha kaalangal konjamoWere the days we lived together so few?
Maranthadhae indha nenjamoDid this heart really forget?
Female
PaarthaSeeing me
Nyabagam illaiyoDo you not remember?
Paruva naadagam thollaiyoIs the drama of youth a burden?

Beyond the translation

Song interpretation

Paartha Nyabagam Illaiyo is a classic song from the 1964 psychological thriller Puthiya Paravai. In the film, the song is performed by B. Saroja Devi's character to provoke and intrigue the protagonist (played by Sivaji Ganesan). The lyricist Kannadasan weaves themes of memory, lost love, reincarnation, and identity as the singer hauntingly asks her beloved if he recalls their past encounters by the riverbank and their deep emotional connection, or if he has erased those memories entirely.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Personification

Indha iravai Kel adhu sollum / Andha nilavai Kel adhu sollum

Attributing human speech capabilities to non-human elements such as the night, moon, and heart.

Metaphor

Indru vanthadhae Pudhiya paravai

Comparing the protagonist's transformed state or re-emergence to a 'new bird' (Pudhiya paravai).

Rhetorical Question

Nyabagam illaiyo / Paruva naadagam thollaiyo

Asking questions not for answers, but to evoke nostalgia, guilt, and deep emotional reflection.

Did you know?

Trivia

Composed by the legendary duo Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy and rendered by P. Susheela, 'Paartha Nyabagam Illaiyo' is celebrated for its Latin jazz/bossa nova musical arrangement. The iconic cabaret-style set and choreography made it one of the most stylish musical sequences in 1960s Tamil cinema.

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