- Lyricist
- Gangai Amaran
- Singer
- S. P. Balasubrahmanyam
- Music director
- Gangai Amaran
- Movie name
- Porutham
- Movie release year
- 1985
- Lyrics added on
- 7 Dec 2020
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
"Punnagai Oru Poovo" is a romantic, poetic Tamil song penned by Gangai Amaran for the 1985 movie Porutham. The lyrics explore the poetic wonder of love, metaphorically comparing the female beloved to flowers, gold, rivers, and divine angels. The protagonist reflects on the anguish of longing, reading letters, dreaming of his beloved, and finally experiencing the tender interplay between dream and reality. The stanzas evoke deep romantic imagery where thoughts become written words and dreams blur into conscious longing. Through playful rhetorical questions and sweet metaphors like 'flowering creeper' and 'young deer', the song captures the essence of youthful courtship, separation, and intimate longing.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Rhetorical Question (Vinaa Aani)
“Punnagai oru poovo ponno”
Posing questions comparing beauty to nature and precious elements ('Is a smile a flower or gold?') to emphasize grace.
Metaphor (Uvagam)
“Pen oru nadhiyo”
Comparing a woman's graceful form to a flowing river ('Pen oru nadhiyo') and a lover to a young deer ('Ilamaane').
End Rhyme (Eyai Thodai)
“Thoongaatha nenjam thannai yaedaakkinaal / Thudigindra ennam thannai ezhuththaakkinaal”
Matching end sounds in adjacent lines ('yaedaakkinaal' and 'ezhuththaakkinaal') creating musical rhythm.
Initial Alliteration (Monai Thodai)
“Thoongaatha nenjam thannai yaedaakkinaal”
Repetition of initial consonant sounds ('Thoongaatha' / 'Thudigindra') at the start of consecutive lines.
Did you know?
Trivia
Porutham (1985) features lyrics written by Gangai Amaran, who frequently collaborated as both a lyricist and music director in 1980s Tamil cinema, known for incorporating rich poetic metaphors grounded in folk and classical aesthetics.
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