♫ Tanglish lyrics	↻ English translation
Male
Thirupachi aruvaala	Sharpen the Thirupachi sickle,
Theethikkittu vaadaa vaadaa	Sharpen it and come, come!
Thirupachi aruvaala	Sharpen the Thirupachi sickle,
Theethikkittu vaadaa vaadaa	Sharpen it and come, come!
Male
Thirupachi aruvaala	Sharpen the Thirupachi sickle,
Theethikkittu vaadaa vaadaa	Sharpen it and come, come!
Male
Thirupachi aruvaala	Sharpen the Thirupachi sickle,
Theethikkittu vaadaa vaadaa	Sharpen it and come, come!
Singam peththa pillaiyinnu	That we are children born to a lion,
Theriya vaippom vaadaa vaadaa	Let us prove it, come, come!
Male
Ettu dhesa thorandhirukku	Eight directions are open,
Ettu vechu vaadaa vaadaa	Take eight steps and come, come!
Etta nikkum sooriyana	The sun standing far away,
Yetti thodu vaadaa vaadaa	Reach out and touch it, come, come!
Male
Por dhaanaae namma jaadhi	Warfare is our clan's nature,
Pozhudhupokku vaadaa vaadaa	And our pastime, come, come!
Poovellaam namma ooril	Every flower in our village,
Pulinagamaa maarum vaadaa	Will turn into tiger claws, come!
Male
Vellaattu koottamunnu	Those who said outside,
Veliya sonna aalugala	That we are a herd of goats,
Vellaaviyil pottu	Put them in the steam washer,
Veluthukkattu vaadaa vaadaa	And thrash them up, come, come!
Male
Thirupachi aruvaala	Sharpen the Thirupachi sickle,
Theethikkittu vaadaa vaadaa	Sharpen it and come, come!
Singam peththa pillaiyinnu	That we are children born to a lion,
Theriya vaippom vaadaa vaadaa	Let us prove it, come, come!
Chorus
……………..
Female
Engooru pombalaiya	The one who came sniffing around,
Moppamida vandhavana	The women of our village,
Engasiyaan mookkaruthaaga	Our grandfather cut off his nose!
Male :Engaatta thirudi thinnu	Male: The one who stole our goat and ate it,
Sappu kotti ninnavana	Smacking his lips as he stood,
Engaathaa naakkaruthaaga	Our mother cut off his tongue!
Female
Enga kurumbaattu	Our Kurumbai sheep,
Kari kozhambu	Mutton curry,
Kulithalaiyil mana manakkum	Its fragrance wafts till Kulithalai,
Vaasathukkae yechi vitteega	You drooled just at that aroma!
Male
Naanga kulichi	The water in which we bathed,
Anuppi vecha	And sent flowing down,
Korattaathu thanniyila	The Korattathu river water,
Yendi ammaa kari samaicheenga	Why did you cook curry with that water, woman?
Female
Ada kombaa maan thoppula	Hey, in the horned deer grove,
Kola kolayaa kaai thirudi	Stealing raw fruits by bunches,
Kovanaatha thavara vitteega	You lost your loincloth there!
Male
Antha kovanatha kondu poyi	Taking that very loincloth,
Appanukku selavillaama	Without any expense to your father,
Ribbanukku vetti kitteega	You cut it up to make hair ribbons!
Female
Ada kalavaani gothiramae	Oh, clan of thieves!
Kaala maattu……	Bull's...
Ada kalavaani gothiramae	Oh, clan of thieves!
Kaalamaattu moothiramae	Urine of a bull!
Eppa neenga thirundha poreenga	When are you ever going to reform?
Chorus
…………….
Male
Uppu thinnaa thanni kudi	If you eat salt, drink water;
Thappu senjaa thalaiyil adi	If you do wrong, get hit on the head!
Parambaraiyaa enga kolgaiyadaa	That is our policy for generations, man!
Male
Maanam thaanae vetti satta	Honor alone is our dhoti and shirt,
Mathadhellaam vaazha matta	Everything else is just plantain bark;
Maanam kaakka veeram venumadaa	To protect honor, valor is needed, man!
Male
Ada solakkoozhu	Hey, if anyone comes asking,
Kettu vandhaa	For simple corn porridge,
Soru pottu visirividum	Serving food and fanning them with love,
Eeramullathu enga vamsamadaa	Compassion is in our lineage, man!
Male
Soru pottum kazhutharuthaa	If they slit our throats after eating our food,
Kooru pottu pangu vaikkum	Carving them up into equal shares,
Veeram thaanae enga vamsamadaa	Valor is in our lineage, man!
Male
Naanga vambu sandaikku	We do not go looking,
Porathilla	For unnecessary fights,
Vandha sandaiya viduvathilla	But we never back down from a fight that comes!
Varippulithaan thothathillaiadaa	The striped tiger has never lost, man!
Male
Enga uraiya vittu	Drawing the sword,
Vaazh yeduthaa	From our scabbard,
Ratha rusi kaatti vaikkum	Showing it the taste of blood,
Vazhakkam enga kula vazhakkamadaa	Is our ancestral custom, man!
Male
Naan thatti vechaa	If I pat down,
Puli adangum	The tiger calms down;
Ettu vechaa mala urugum	If I step forward, the mountain melts;
Thottathellaam thulanga	Whatever is touched will shine bright,
Pogudhadaa	It will shine, man!
Male
Thirupachi aruvaala	Sharpen the Thirupachi sickle,
Theethikkittu vaadaa vaadaa	Sharpen it and come, come!
Singam peththa pillaiyinnu	That we are children born to a lion,
Theriya vaippom vaadaa vaadaa	Let us prove it, come, come!
Male
Ettu dhesa thorandhirukku	Eight directions are open,
Ettu vechu vaadaa vaadaa	Take eight steps and come, come!
Etta nikkum sooriyana	The sun standing far away,
Yetti thodu vaadaa vaadaa	Reach out and touch it, come, come!
Male
Por dhaanaae namma jaadhi	Warfare is our clan's nature,
Pozhudhupokku vaadaa vaadaa	And our pastime, come, come!
Poovellaam namma ooril	Every flower in our village,
Pulinagamaa maarum vaadaa	Will turn into tiger claws, come!
Male
Vellaattu koottamunnu	Those who said outside,
Veliya sonna aalugala	That we are a herd of goats,
Vellaaviyil pottu	Put them in the steam washer,
Veluthukkattu vaadaa vaadaa	And thrash them up, come, come!
Male
Thirupachi aruvaala	Sharpen the Thirupachi sickle,
Theethikkittu vaadaa vaadaa	Sharpen it and come, come!
Thirupachi aruvaala	Sharpen the Thirupachi sickle,
Theethikkittu vaadaa vaadaa	Sharpen it and come, come!

Lyrics & meaning

Song interpretation

Poetic devices

Ethukai (Second-letter Rhyme)

Monai (Initial Alliteration)

Metaphor

Hyperbole

Trivia

More from Taj Mahal