- Lyricist
- R. V. Udhaya Kumar
- Singer
- S. P. Balasubrahmanyam
- Music director
- Deva
- Movie name
- Dharma Chakkaram
- Movie release year
- 1997
- Lyrics added on
- 19 Apr 2026
Lyrics & meaning
♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
……………………..
Pettakkozhi chinna chittukkozhi
Venum kattuppaadi
Pettakkozhi chinna chittukkozhi
Venum kattuppaadi
Paalaadai koranjaa
Thanmaanam pogumadi
Melaadai sarinjaa
Panpaadu paavamadi
Kandavargal kannupadum
Unnazhaga moodikkadi
Siththam ketta sirukkiyai pola
Thoranthu poda venaamadi
Adi lambaa puliyangombaa
Lambaa lambaa nee puliyangombaa
Kaadu manjakkaadu
Pachcha manjal araichchu podu
Melanaattu mogaththa nee
VIttupputtu odu
Maeni thanga koodu oru
Selai vaangi moodu
Thegam kaatti nadanthu vanthaa
Kettuppudum naadu
Nee tamizh ponnaa
Vekkappattu ninnaa
Pakkam vanthu kattikkuvaan
Aththa magan thannaal
Minukki minukki poeriyae
Manathakkaali keeraiyae
Chorus :Minukki minukki poeriyae
Manathakkaali keeraiyae
Morachchi morachchi mogaththa thiruppi
Poratti poratti iduppa valaikkum
Lambaa nee puliyangombaa….haa….
Chorus :Lambaa lambaa nee puliyangombaa
Hoi pettakkozhi chinna chittukkozhi
Venum kattuppaadu aamaam aahaan
…………………
Peri kannam peri namma
Aiyyaru kadai poori
Sollipputtaen puththimathi
Allikkadi vaari vaari
Aiyaiya aiyyayaiya vaari
Ooru namma ooru athu
Pesum kadhai nooru
Intha mannil ulla pengalukku
Kanniyamthaan peru
Karpukkoru deivam
Veru engum illai
Kannagithaan undu
Namma tamizh mannilae
Oorak kedukkum vedalaiyae
Urichcha varuththa kadalaiyae
Chorus :Oorak kedukkum vedalaiyae
Urichcha varuththa kadalaiyae
Morachchi morachchi mogaththa thiruppi
Poratti poratti iduppa valaikkum
Male :Lambaa nee puliyangombaa….haa….
Chorus :Lambaa lambaa nee puliyangombaa
Pettakkozhi chinna chittukkozhi
Venum kattuppaadu
Pettakkozhi chinna chittukkozhi
Venum kattuppaadu
Paalaadai korainjaa
Thanmaanam pogumadi
Melaadai sarinjaa
Panpaadu paavamadi
Kandavargal kannupadum
Unnazhaga moodikkadi
Siththam ketta sirukkiyai pol
Thoranthu poda venaamadi
Adi lambaa nee puliyangombaa….
Male and Chorus :
Lambaa lambaa nee puliyangombaa
....................
Hen, little tiny sparrow,
Discipline is required.
Hen, little tiny sparrow,
Discipline is required.
If the cream on top of the milk reduces,
Self-respect will be lost, my girl!
If the upper garment slips,
Our culture will suffer, my girl!
Eyes of all onlookers will fall upon you,
Cover up your beauty, my girl!
Like an insane girl,
Do not leave yourself exposed, my girl!
Hey tall girl, high up like a tamarind branch,
Tall girl, tall girl, you are hard to reach like a tamarind branch!
The field is a field of turmeric,
Grind fresh green turmeric and apply it,
The obsession with Western ways,
Abandon it and run away!
Your body is a golden cage, so buy a
Saree and cover it up!
If you walk showing off your body,
The country will get ruined!
If you stand as a Tamil girl,
Filled with modesty,
He will come close and embrace you,
Your aunt's son, all on his own!
You go about glittering and shining,
Oh nightshade greens!
Chorus: You go about glittering and shining,
Oh nightshade greens!
Glaring and turning your face away,
Twisting and bending your waist,
Tall girl, you are hard to reach like a tamarind branch... haa...
Chorus: Tall girl, tall girl, you are hard to reach like a tamarind branch!
Hoi, hen, little tiny sparrow,
Discipline is required, yes, aha!
....................
Big cheeks, big ones, our
Poori from Aiyyar's shop,
I have spoken words of advice,
Gather it up in abundance, my girl!
Aiyaiya aiyyayaiya, gather it up!
The town is our town,
It speaks a hundred stories!
For the women in this land,
Dignity is their name!
A deity for chastity,
Is nowhere else to be found,
Only Kannagi exists
In our Tamil soil!
Young girl who ruins the town,
Peeled and roasted peanut!
Chorus: Young girl who ruins the town,
Peeled and roasted peanut!
Glaring and turning your face away,
Twisting and bending your waist,
Male: Tall girl, you are hard to reach like a tamarind branch... haa...
Chorus: Tall girl, tall girl, you are hard to reach like a tamarind branch!
Hen, little tiny sparrow,
Discipline is required.
Hen, little tiny sparrow,
Discipline is required.
If the cream on top of the milk reduces,
Self-respect will be lost, my girl!
If the upper garment slips,
Our culture will suffer, my girl!
Eyes of all onlookers will fall upon you,
Cover up your beauty, my girl!
Like an insane girl,
Do not leave yourself exposed, my girl!
Hey tall girl, you are hard to reach like a tamarind branch...
Male and Chorus:
Tall girl, tall girl, you are hard to reach like a tamarind branch!
Chorus
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Chorus
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
The song 'Pettakkozhi' from Dharma Chakkaram (1997) is a playful yet moralizing folk-pop track sung by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam. In the song, the protagonist teases a modern, fashionable village girl, advising her to uphold traditional Tamil cultural values, modesty, and self-respect rather than imitating Western trends or modern clothing.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Simile (Uvamai)
“Siththam ketta sirukkiyai pola”
Compares behaving recklessly or exposing oneself to acting like an unhinged girl ('Siththam ketta sirukki').
Metaphor (Uruvagam)
“Maeni thanga koodu oru”
Describes the girl's body as a 'golden cage' ('thanga koodu') and refers to an proud/unreachable woman as a high tamarind branch ('puliyangombaa').
Alliteration (Monai)
“Pettakkozhi chinna chittukkozhi”
Repetition of initial consonant sounds across adjacent words, such as 'Pettakkozhi' and 'chittukkozhi'.
Did you know?
Trivia
Composed by Deva for the Vijayakanth-starrer 'Dharma Chakkaram' (1997), this track uses lively folk rhythms and catchy colloquialisms typical of Deva's popular late-90s style, rendered energetically by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam.
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