- Lyricist
- Kannadasan
- Singer
- K. V. Janaki
- Music director
- S. M. Subbaiah Naidu
- Movie name
- Kanniyin Kadhali
- Movie release year
- 1949
- Lyrics added on
- 12 Dec 2025
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
In this sorrowful lamentation, a distressed young woman addresses the surging sea, accusing it of committing a terrible sin by snatching away her beloved brother. She compares their inseparable bond to a Veena (lute) and its divine music, mourning that taking him away is like stripping the soul of sound from the instrument, leaving behind only silence. She confronts the ocean for its unfeeling nature, questioning if swallowing the sun daily is not enough to satisfy its appetite that it had to prey upon her innocent brother. Heartbroken, she demands her brother's return or her own death, warning the sea of the divine wrath brought on by a helpless woman's tears and curses.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Simile (Upamai)
“Veenaiyum naadhamum pol”
Compares the deep, harmonious bond between brother and sister to a Veena and its musical sound.
Personification
“Aadhithanai dhianmum vizhungiyum”
Addresses the ocean as a conscious, ruthless entity capable of feeling, eating the sun, and committing crime.
Metaphor
“Aadhithanai dhianmum vizhungiyum”
Depicts the setting sun being swallowed by the sea horizon as an endless appetite of the ocean.
Did you know?
Trivia
This song belongs to the 1949 movie 'Kanniyin Kadhali', which is a Tamil cinematic adaptation of William Shakespeare's famous play 'Twelfth Night'. It features early lyric work by the revered poet Kannadasan.
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