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Isaimozhi
Lyrics & meaning

Rasaathi

From Thiruda Thiruda · 1993

Lyricist
Vairamuthu
Singer
Shahul Hameed
Music director
A. R. Rahman
Details
Thiruda Thiruda1993

Lyrics & meaning

Tanglish lyrics English translation
Male
Raasathi en usiru ennathillaPrincess, my life is no longer mine
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm..hmmm...
Male :Poochoodi vakkappattu pora pullaMale: Wearing flowers, given away in marriage, goes the girl
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm..hmmm...
Male :Nee ponaa en udambu mannukkullaMale: If you leave, my body will be inside the earth
Female :Hmmm ..hmmm…Female: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Chorus :Hmmm ..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Male :Ravodu sethi varum vaadi pullaMale: Come, girl, who will join me along with the night
Female :Hmmm ..hmmm…Female: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Chorus :Hmmm ..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Male
Raasathi en usiru ennathillaPrincess, my life is no longer mine
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…(12) hmmChorus: Hmmm..hmmm...(12) hmm
Female :Aaaa…aaa…aaa…aaa…Female: Aaaa...aaa...aaa...aaa...
Male
Kaara veetu thinnaiyilaOn the porch of the red-tiled house
Karikku manja araikaiyilaeWhile grinding turmeric for curry
Chorus :Manjala araiku munnaeChorus: Before grinding the turmeric
Manasa arachavalaeThe girl who ground my heart
Male
Karisakkattu oodaiyilaeIn the stream of the black soil field
Kandangi thuvaikkayilaeWhile washing her Kandangi saree
Chorus :Thuniya nanaiyavittuChorus: Letting the cloth get wet
Manasu puzhinchavalaeThe girl who squeezed my heart
Male
Andha kalathu metilOn the mound near the threshing floor
Ennai izhuthu mudinjikkittuPulling me and tying me to her
Poravalae……The girl who is leaving...
Chorus :Porava poravathaanChorus: The one who leaves is leaving
Pothikkittu ponavathaanCovered up, she has left
Male
Andha kalyana saelaiyilaIn that wedding saree
Kanneerai thodachikittuWiping away her tears
Poravalae…..The girl who is leaving...
Chorus :Porava poravathanChorus: The one who leaves is leaving
Ponjathiyaa ponavathaanHaving become someone else's wife, she is leaving
Male
Naan thantha malligaiyaThrowing away the jasmine flowers I gave her
Nattathil pottu vittuIn the middle of the street
Arali poochoodiAdorning poisonous oleander flowers
Azhuthapadi pora pullaThe girl who leaves while crying
Male
Aaaa….aaaa…..aaa….Aaaa....aaaa.....aaa....
Chorus :{Kadala kaatukkullaChorus: In the peanut field
Kaiyaduchu sonna pullaThe girl who gave her word with a promise
Kaathula ezhuthanumWritten on the wind
Pombalainga sonna solla} (2)Are the words spoken by women
Male
Raasathi en usiru ennathillaPrincess, my life is no longer mine
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm..hmmm...
Female :Hmmm ..hmmm…Female: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Male :Poochoodi vakkappattu pora pullaMale: Wearing flowers, given away in marriage, goes the girl
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm..hmmm...
Female :Hmmm ..hmmm…Female: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Male :Nee ponaa en udambu mannukkullaMale: If you leave, my body will be inside the earth
Female :Hmmm ..hmmm…Female: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Chorus :Hmmm ..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Male :Ravodu sethi varum vaadi pullaMale: Come, girl, who will join me along with the night
Female :Hmmm ..hmmm…Female: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Chorus :Hmmm ..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Male
Raasathi en usiru ennathillaPrincess, my life is no longer mine
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…(12)Chorus: Hmmm..hmmm...(12)
Female :Ohoo…ooo..ooo..ooo…aa…aa…Female: Ohoo...ooo..ooo..ooo...aa...aa...
Ohoo…ooo..ooo..ooo…aa….aa…Ohoo...ooo..ooo..ooo...aa....aa...
Ohoo…ooo..ooo..oooOhoo...ooo..ooo..ooo
Ohoo…ooo..ooo..oooOhoo...ooo..ooo..ooo
Aaa….aaa…aaa…aaa….aaa….Aaa....aaa...aaa...aaa....aaa....
Aaa….aaa…aaa…aaa….aaa….Aaa....aaa...aaa...aaa....aaa....
Male
Thottu thottu pottu vachaThe spot placed on the forehead by touching repeatedly
Suttu viral kaayaliyaeThe index finger's print hasn't even dried yet
Chorus :Marikozhunthu vecha kaiyilChorus: On the hand where sweet marjoram was kept
Vaasam innum pogaliyaeThe fragrance hasn't left yet
Male
Maruthayilae vaangi thanthaBought and given in Madurai
Valavi odaiyaliyaeThe bangles haven't broken yet
Chorus :Mallu vetti mathiyilaChorus: In the middle of the white cotton dhoti
Manjakara maaralaiyaeThe turmeric stain hasn't faded yet
Male
Antha kazhuthu thaemalaiyumThat birthmark on her neck
Kaathora macchathaiyumAnd the mole near her ear
PaappadheppoWhen will I see them again?
Chorus :Paappadheppo paappadheppoChorus: When will I see them, when will I see them?
Pouranamiyum vaaraadheppoWhen will the full moon day arrive?
Male
Antha kolusu mani sirruppumThe tinkling sound of her anklet bells
Komari ilanjiruppumAnd the youthful laughter of that young girl
KetpadheppoWhen will I hear them?
Chorus :Ketpadheppo ketpadheppoChorus: When will I hear them, when will I hear them?
Keerathandum pooppadheppoWhen will the amaranth stalk bloom with flowers?
Male
Karuvelan kaatukkullaInside the thorny acacia forest
Karuchankuruvi onnuA black drongo bird
Suthi maari kathuthammaFlies around and cries out continuously
Thunaiyathaan kanominnuSaying its companion is nowhere to be found
Male
Oooo…ooo…ooo..oo…ooo…Oooo...ooo...ooo..oo...ooo...
Chorus :{Kadala kaatukkullaChorus: In the peanut field
Kaiyaduchu sonna pullaThe girl who gave her word with a promise
Kaathula ezhuthanumWritten on the wind
Pombalainga sonna solla} (2)Are the words spoken by women
Male
Raasathi en usiru ennathillaPrincess, my life is no longer mine
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm..hmmm...
Female :Oooo..ooo…ooo..oooFemale: Oooo..ooo...ooo..ooo
Male :Poochoodi vakkappattu pora pullaMale: Wearing flowers, given away in marriage, goes the girl
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm..hmmm...
Female :Oooo..ooo…ooo..oooFemale: Oooo..ooo...ooo..ooo
Male :Nee ponaa en udambu mannukkullaMale: If you leave, my body will be inside the earth
Female :Oooo..ooo…ooo..oooFemale: Oooo..ooo...ooo..ooo
Chorus :Hmmm ..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Male :Ravodu sethi varum vaadi pullaMale: Come, girl, who will join me along with the night
Female :Aaaa….aaa…aaa….aaa…Female: Aaaa....aaa...aaa....aaa...
Chorus :Hmmm ..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm ..hmmm...
Male
Raasathi en usiru ennathillaPrincess, my life is no longer mine
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm..hmmm...
Female :Oooo..ooo…ooo..oooFemale: Oooo..ooo...ooo..ooo
Male :Poochoodi vakkappattu pora pullaMale: Wearing flowers, given away in marriage, goes the girl
Chorus :Hmmm..hmmm…Chorus: Hmmm..hmmm...
Female :Aaaa….aaa…aaa….aaa…Female: Aaaa....aaa...aaa....aaa...

Beyond the translation

Song interpretation

Raasathi En Usiru is a poignant, haunting dirge-like lament from the 1993 Tamil film Thiruda Thiruda. Written by Vairamuthu and composed by A.R. Rahman, the song portrays the deep grief of a lover witnessing his beloved being forcibly married off to another man. He recalls intimate rural memories—grinding turmeric, washing sarees at the stream, and quiet promises in peanut fields—contrasting past love with the painful present where she leaves in bridal attire wearing sorrowful oleander flowers instead of joyous jasmine. The song relies heavily on earthy rustic imagery, metaphorizing the fleeting nature of women's promises as 'writing on the wind.' Through melancholic vocal harmonies and bird imagery (a lone drongo searching for its lost mate in acacia woods), the protagonist conveys his profound despair, feeling that his very soul has departed with her marriage.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Metaphor

Manasa arachavalae

Manasa arachavalae / Manasu puzhinchavalae - Comparing the emotional impact on his heart to grinding spices or wringing out wet clothes.

Contrast / Imagery

Arali poochoodi

Naan thantha malligaiya... Arali poochoodi - Contrast between sweet white jasmine (symbolizing love) thrown away and bitter/poisonous oleander (symbolizing tragedy/sorrow) worn on her head.

Hyperbole / Simile

Kaathula ezhuthanum pombalainga sonna solla

Kaathula ezhuthanum pombalainga sonna solla - Comparing promises made by women to words written on the wind, emphasizing their transience and unreliability.

Personification / Nature Parallelism

Suthi maari kathuthamma thunaiyathaan kanominnu

Karuchankuruvi onnu... Thunaiyathaan kanominnu - The black drongo crying for its missing mate serves as a parallel representation of the lover's isolation.

Emoni / Rhyme (Monorhyme & Alliteration)

Karikku manja araikaiyilae

Repetition of sounds like 'araikaiyilae', 'thuvaikkayilae' creates a rhythmic folk cadence typical of rural Tamil songs.

Did you know?

Trivia

Though credited in common queries as Unknown, this song was composed by A. R. Rahman for Mani Ratnam's film 'Thiruda Thiruda' (1993). Sung prominently by Shahul Hameed with backing vocals by Sujatha Mohan and Minmini, it is famously known for being an predominantly a cappella track with minimal instrumental accompaniment, relying almost entirely on vocal harmonies to evoke deep mournfulness.

Keep listening

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