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Isaimozhi
Lyrics & meaning

Pattu Sattai Pottu Vantha

From Sonthakkaran · 1989

Lyricist
Vairamuthu
Singers
S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Chorus
Music director
Chandrabose
Details
Sonthakkaran1989

Lyrics & meaning

Tanglish lyrics English translation
Male
……………….....
Chorus
………………….....
Male
Pattu sattai pottu vantha mainaaOh maina bird wearing a silk shirt,
Unna thottu thottu pesaporaan nainaaThis guy is going to touch you and talk to you.
Thulli thulli vanthirukkum meenaa meenaaOh fish that came leaping and jumping,
Thoondililae sikka vantha meenaa ingae neeyaa naanaa…Is it you or me who came to get caught in the hook here?
Male
Pattu sattai pottu vantha mainaaOh maina bird wearing a silk shirt,
Unna thottu thottu pesaporaan nainaa nainaaThis guy is going to touch you and talk to you.
Male
………………...
Chorus :…………….Chorus: ...
Male
Naanaa oru pennai valai veesiI have never cast a net,
Thottu paarththathum illaiNor touched a woman on my own initiative.
Thaanaa onnu vanthaa vidamaattaenIf one comes on her own, I won't let her go,
Adhil thoththathum illaiAnd I have never lost in that either.
Male
Ponnunga illaavittaa bhoomiyum illaiWithout women, there is no earth,
Pondaatti illamaththaan saamiyum illaWithout a wife, there is no God either.
Kadhalindri vaazhum vaazhkkai meiyalla….vaaA life lived without love is not real... come!
Male
Pattu sattai pottu vantha mainaaOh maina bird wearing a silk shirt,
Unna thottu thottu pesaporaan nainaaThis guy is going to touch you and talk to you.
Thulli thulli vanthirukkum meenaa meenaaOh fish that came leaping and jumping,
Thoondililae sikka vantha meenaa ingae neeyaa naanaa…Is it you or me who came to get caught in the hook here?
Male
………………...
Chorus :…………….Chorus: ...
Male
Mannil nindru konduStanding on the earth,
Antha vinnil oru thottam amaippaenI will build a garden up in the sky.
Vinnail nindru konduStanding in the sky,
Intha mannil kottai amaippaenI will build a fort down on this earth.
Male
Aadaatha aattam ellaam aadi mudippaenI will perform every wild act imaginable,
Aanaalum kadhalukku kaadhu koduppaenEven so, I will lend an ear to love.
Muththam endra paadam indru karppippaen vaaCome, today I will teach you the lesson called a kiss!
Male
Pattu sattai pottu vantha mainaaOh maina bird wearing a silk shirt,
Unna thottu thottu pesaporaan nainaaThis guy is going to touch you and talk to you.
Thulli thulli vanthirukkum meenaa meenaaOh fish that came leaping and jumping,
Thoondililae sikka vantha meenaa ingae neeyaa naanaa…Is it you or me who came to get caught in the hook here?
Male
Pattu sattai pottu vantha mainaa hooOh maina bird wearing a silk shirt, hoo!
Unna thottu thottu pesaporaan nainaaThis guy is going to touch you and talk to you.
Thaadarathagada thaadarathagada thaa….Thaadarathagada thaadarathagada thaa...

Beyond the translation

Song interpretation

This song is a lively, romantic, and playful duet/soliloquy in which the protagonist playfully teases his lover. He metaphorically compares her to a silk-clad maina bird and a lively fish leaping into a fishing net, questioning who is truly catching whom in this game of romance. He boasts of his romantic confidence while emphasizing that a true life is meaningless without love, women, and companionship.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Iyaibu (End Rhyme)

Pattu sattai pottu vantha mainaa / Unna thottu thottu pesaporaan nainaa

Matching end sounds in Tamil poetry creating rhythmic cadence, seen in 'mainaa', 'nainaa', 'meenaa', and 'naanaa'.

Metaphor (Uruvagaim)

Thulli thulli vanthirukkum meenaa meenaa / Thoondililae sikka vantha meenaa

Addressing the beloved as a maina bird wearing a silk shirt and a leaping fish caught on a hook.

Hyperbole (Uyarvu Navitchi)

Mannil nindru kondu antha vinnil oru thottam amaippaen

Exaggeration of capabilities to show grand confidence in love, such as building a garden in the sky from earth.

Adukku Thodar (Repetition for Emphasis)

Unna thottu thottu pesaporaan nainaa

Using repeated words sequentially ('thottu thottu', 'thulli thulli') to add musical rhythm and sensory detail.

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Trivia

Sonthakkaran (1989) is an Indian Tamil action-drama film directed by L. Raja, starring Arjun Sarja and Seetha. The soundtrack for the film was composed by Chandrabose, with lyrics written by Vairamuthu.

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