- Lyricist
- Udumalai Narayanakavi
- Singer
- T. M. Soundararajan
- Music director
- R. Sudharsanam
- Movie name
- Mamiyar Mechiya Marumagal
- Movie release year
- 1959
- Lyrics added on
- 27 Oct 2024
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
This song is a sharp social commentary and satirical critique of materialist society, penned by the renowned poet Udumalai Narayanakavi. It highlights how money dictates human respect, social standing, religious rituals, and family relationships. In a commercialized world, moral character (gunam) is treated like garbage while money (panam) receives the highest seat at the table. Without wealth, a person is treated as good as dead—a walking corpse—regardless of their virtues.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Ethirai (Second letter rhyme)
“Panam pandhiyilae / Gunam kuppaiyilae”
Matching second consonants in key words across lines to create rhythmic symmetry ('Panam' and 'Gunam').
Metaphor
“Polladha panam illa nadai piname”
Describing a penniless person as 'nadai pinam' (a walking corpse), emphasizing total loss of societal dignity without wealth.
Anaphora / Repetition (Adukkuthodar)
“Panam panam panam panam”
Rhythmic repetition of 'panam' and 'gunam' to create urgency and musical emphasis on the contrast between money and character.
Did you know?
Trivia
Written by Udumalai Narayanakavi and composed by R. Sudarsanam for 'Mamiyar Mechiya Marumagal' (1959), this song is famous for its timeless social criticism delivered powerfully through T. M. Soundararajan's voice. Udumalai Narayanakavi was famous for weaving rationalist ideals and social reform messages into mainstream Tamil cinema lyrics.
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