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Sattam Oru Vilaiyattu album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Sugam Tharum Nila

From Sattam Oru Vilaiyattu · 1987

Lyricist
Pulamaipithan
Singers
S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chitra
Music director
M. S. Vishwanathan
Movie name
Sattam Oru Vilaiyattu
Movie release year
1987
Lyrics added on
20 Dec 2022

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Sugam tharum nilaa ennai
Kanal endru veruppathu sariyalla
Male :Haahhaa manam tharum malae unnai
Mullin karam anaippathu muraiyalla
Sugam tharum nilaa ennai
Kanal endru veruppathu sariyalla
Male :Manam tharum malae unnai
Mullin karam anaippathu muraiyalla
Ilamanam thudikkirathae
Unai enni thavikkirathae
Male :Iruvarum iru thuruvam
Idhil engu uravu varum
Sugam tharum nilaa ennai
Kanal endru veruppathu sariyalla
Male :Manam tharum malae unnai
Mullin karam anaippathu muraiyalla
Mogaththai azhiththu vidu enum
Paattondru naan indru kettaen
Female :Aasaikku siragu katti naan
Aagaayam engengum ponaen
Mogaththai azhiththu vidu enum
Paattondru naan indru kettaen
Female :Aasaikku siragu katti naan
Aagaayam engengum ponaen
Kandatho minmini
Adhu kayil vilakkaagumaa
Female :Vanthatho pournami
Enthan vaanam irulaagumaa
Sugam tharum nilaa ennai
Kanal endru veruppathu sariyalla
Male :Manam tharum malae unnai
Mullin karam anaippathu muraiyalla
Koottukkul kuyil irunthu
Dhinam un kadhal raagangal paadum
Male :Vettaikku varum vazhiyil
Intha raagangal yaarukku vendum
Unnaiththaan enniththaan
Intha jeevan thudikkindrathu
Male :Thannaiyae maranthu
Oru vaazhkkai nadakkindrathu
Sugam tharum nilaa ennai
Kanal endru veruppathu sariyalla
Male :Manam tharum malae unnai
Mullin karam anaippathu muraiyalla
Ilamanam thudikkirathae
Unai enni thavikkirathae
Male :Iruvarum iru thuruvam
Idhil engu uravu varum
I am the soothing moon,
It is not right to hate me as fire.
Male: Haha, O fragrant flower,
It is not right for a thorny hand to embrace you.
I am the soothing moon,
It is not right to hate me as fire.
Male: O fragrant flower,
It is not right for a thorny hand to embrace you.
This young heart beats restlessly,
It aches with longing, thinking of you.
Male: We both are opposite poles,
How can a relationship ever form between us?
I am the soothing moon,
It is not right to hate me as fire.
Male: O fragrant flower,
It is not right for a thorny hand to embrace you.
"Destroy all passion,"
Is a song I heard today.
Female: Giving wings to my desires,
I flew everywhere across the sky.
"Destroy all passion,"
Is a song I heard today.
Female: Giving wings to my desires,
I flew everywhere across the sky.
What you saw was only a firefly,
Can it ever become a lamp in your hand?
Female: The full moon has arrived,
Can my sky ever turn dark?
I am the soothing moon,
It is not right to hate me as fire.
Male: O fragrant flower,
It is not right for a thorny hand to embrace you.
Staying inside its nest, the cuckoo
Sings your love melodies every day.
Male: On the path leading to a hunt,
Who needs these melodies?
Thinking only of you,
This life of mine aches with longing.
Male: Forgetting its own self,
A life merely walks on.
I am the soothing moon,
It is not right to hate me as fire.
Male: O fragrant flower,
It is not right for a thorny hand to embrace you.
This young heart beats restlessly,
It aches with longing, thinking of you.
Male: We both are opposite poles,
How can a relationship ever form between us?
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Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

This emotional duet from Sattam Oru Vilaiyattu captures the romantic tension between two lovers facing social and personal boundaries. The female lead portrays herself as a soothing moon and a delicate flower, pleading with her lover not to reject her affection or mistake her warmth for destructive fire. In response, the male lead views himself as a rough thorn and a hunter, arguing that their lives represent two opposite poles that should not intersect for her own safety and well-being. Through classic Tamil metaphors—such as caged cuckoos, fireflies versus lamps, and thorns versus flowers—the song builds a narrative of bittersweet yearning. While she dares to dream and fly across the sky, he remains guarded and pragmatic about the harsh realities of his world, making their love a heartbreaking struggle between deep desire and inevitable distance.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Uvamaani (Metaphor)

Male :Manam tharum malae unnai / Mullin karam anaippathu muraiyalla

The male protagonist refers to himself metaphorically as 'mullin karam' (hand of a thorn) and the female protagonist as 'manam tharum malar' (fragrant flower), contrasting his rough nature with her delicate beauty.

Ethirsol (Antithesis / Contrast)

Sugam tharum nilaa ennai / Kanal endru veruppathu sariyalla

Contrasts soothing, comforting imagery 'sugam tharum nilaa' (joy-giving moon) with destructive imagery 'kanal' (fire) to show how her love is being misunderstood.

Monnai (Initial Alliteration)

Kandatho minmini / Adhu kayil vilakkaagumaa

Repetition of initial consonant sounds across consecutive lines ('Kandatho' and 'Kayil') creating rhythmic harmony.

Did you know?

Trivia

The film 'Sattam Oru Vilaiyattu' (1987) was directed by S. A. Chandrasekhar and starred Vijayakanth and Radha. Featuring music by the legendary M. S. Viswanathan with lyrics by Pulamaipithan, this track stands out for its rich poetic imagery and expressive vocal performances by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam and K. S. Chithra.

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