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Isaimozhi
Lyrics & meaning

Pappa Pappa Kathai Kelu

From Amma Enge · 1964

Lyricist
Kannadasan
Singer
A. L. Ragavan
Music director
S. Vedhachalam
Movie name
Amma Enge
Movie release year
1964
Lyrics added on
21 May 2022

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Pappa pappa kadhai kelu
Kakka nariyin kadhai kelu
Thatha paatti sonna kadhai
Amma appa ketta kadhai
Pappa pappa kadhai kelu
Kakka nariyin kadhai kelu
Thatha paatti sonna kadhai
Amma appa ketta kadhai
Oorukku veliaye kadaiyiruku
Kadaiyilae vengaaya vadaiyirukkum
Kadaiyiale vadaiya thiridikichaam
Kakka marathilae kundhikichaam
Kakka mookilae vadaiyiruku
Kulla nariyumae paathikichaam
Naekka vadaiyai vaangidavae
Nariyoru thanthiram pannikichaam
Kakka paattu paadasolli
Kulla nariyumae kettukichaam
Vaaya thiranthu kakka paada
Vadaiyum keezhae vizhunthiduchaam
Vizhunthatha nariyum kavvikkichaam
Vaayila pottu thinnudichaam
Pappa pappa kadhai kelu
Kakka nariyin kadhai kelu
Thatha paatti sonna kadhai
Amma appa ketta kadhai
Little child, listen to a story,
Listen to the story of the crow and the fox.
The story grandpa and grandma told,
The story mom and dad heard.
Little child, listen to a story,
Listen to the story of the crow and the fox.
The story grandpa and grandma told,
The story mom and dad heard.
There was a shop outside the village,
In that shop were onion vadas.
Stealing a vada from the shop,
The crow went and perched in a tree.
With the vada in the crow's beak,
A little fox caught sight of it.
To slyly snatch that vada away,
The fox played a clever trick.
Asking the crow to sing a song,
The little fox made its request.
As the crow opened its beak to sing,
Down fell the vada to the ground!
The fox snapped up what fell,
Popped it in its mouth and ate it up!
Little child, listen to a story,
Listen to the story of the crow and the fox.
The story grandpa and grandma told,
The story mom and dad heard.
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Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

This song is a classic Tamil nursery rhyme embedded within a film track, recounting the famous moral fable of the crow and the cunning fox. A crow steals an onion vadai from a shop and perches on a tree to enjoy it. A sly fox spots the vadai and deceives the crow by asking it to sing. Intoxicated by flattery, the crow opens its beak, causing the vadai to drop down, which the fox swiftly grabs and consumes. The song serves as a simple, playful cautionary tale for children, warning them against falling for insincere flattery and cunning trickery.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Iyaibu (End Rhyme)

“Pappa pappa kadhai kelu / Kakka nariyin kadhai kelu”

Matching end sounds in consecutive lines ('kadhai kelu', 'vadaiyirukkum / kundhikichaam / paathikichaam')

Edhugai (Second Letter Rhyme)

“Thatha paatti sonna kadhai / Amma appa ketta kadhai”

The second consonant sound is repeated across lines to build rhythmic consistency ('Kakka' / 'Kulla', 'Thatha' / 'Amma').

Monai (Alliteration)

“Pappa pappa kadhai kelu”

Repetition of initial phonetic sounds within a line for musical rhythm ('Pappa pappa', 'Kakka marathilae').

Did you know?

Trivia

This track adapts one of India's oldest Panchatantra fables, popularized in Tamil folklore as a staple children's story. Kannadasan translated the traditional oral tale into rhythmic verse for the 1964 film 'Amma Enge', sung dynamically by A. L. Ragavan.

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