Skip to content
Isaimozhi
Lyrics & meaning

Unnavida Indha Ulagathil

From Virumaandi · 2004

Lyricist
Kamal Haasan
Singers
Kamal Haasan, Shreya Ghoshal
Music director
Ilayaraja
Details
Virumaandi2004

Lyrics & meaning

Tanglish lyrics English translation
Female
Unnai vida …. indha uzhagadhil osandhadhuMore than you... in this world, anything higher or greater
Onnum illa onnum illaThere is nothing, there is nothing.
Unnai vida indha uzhagadhil osandhadhuMore than you, in this world, anything higher or greater
Onnum illa onnum illaThere is nothing, there is nothing.
Male
Unnai vida oru oravunnu sollikidaMore than you, to claim as my own relation
Yaarum illa yaarum illaThere is no one, there is no one.
Female
Vaakapada kedachaan virumaandiI got Virumaandi to wed and belong to,
Saatchi solla sandhiran varuvaandiThe moon itself will come to stand as witness!
Saadhi sanam ellamum avanthaandiHe is my caste, my kin, my everything!
Ketta varam odanae thandhaandiHe granted the boon I requested instantly!
Female
Ennai vida onna charivara purinjikaMore than me, to understand you properly,
Yarum illa yevalum illaThere is no man, nor any woman.
Male
Unnai vida …Female :Ennai vida …More than you... [Female]: More than me...
Female
Alli kodiya kaathu asaikudhuThe wind sways the water lily stems,
Asaiyum kolathu udambu koosudhuSeeing them sway, my body shivers in goosebumps.
Pullarichu paavam ennai polavae alaipaayudhuGetting goosebumps, poor thing, it tosses and turns just like me.
Male
Nilavil kaayum vetti selaiyum nammai paarthu sodi serudhuThe veshti and saree drying under the moonlight pair up upon seeing us,
Serthu vacha kaathae thudhi paadudhu sudhi serudhuThe wind of accumulated love sings praises and tunes into harmony.
Female
Enna pudhu dhaagam analaagudhae en dhegamWhat a strange new thirst! My body turns into burning flame.
Yaaru solli thandhu vandhadhu kaanaa kana vandhu kolludhuWho taught this? An unseen dream comes and takes over me.
Idhuku peru dhaan motchamaa motchamaa motchamaaIs this state what they call salvation? Salvation? Salvation?
Male
Unnai vida ….More than you...
Kaatu vazhi kaalainga kazhuthu mani ketkaiyila namakadhu koil maniHearing the cattle neck-bells along the forest path sounds like sacred temple bells to us.
Raathiriyil pulveli nanaikum pani porthikira namakadhu moodu thuniThe night dew that drenches the grassland becomes a blanket covering us.

Beyond the translation

Song interpretation

The song 'Unnai Vida' from the movie Virumaandi captures a deeply intimate and soul-bound rustic romance between the lead characters. Expressed through vivid natural imagery, the lovers profess that no relation or pleasure in the world surpasses their bond. Every element of their rural surroundings—from the wind swaying lilies to the night dew on grass—mirrors their passion and elevates their earthly love into a spiritual state of bliss or salvation (motcham).

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Iyaibu (End Rhyme)

Vaakapada kedachaan virumaandi / Saatchi solla sandhiran varuvaandi

Matching end sounds across consecutive lines ('virumaandi', 'varuvaandi', 'avanthaandi', 'thandhaandi') creating a rhythmic, musical flow.

Personification

Nilavil kaayum vetti selaiyum nammai paarthu sodi serudhu

Attributing human actions of pairing up to inanimate objects like drying clothes (veshti and saree).

Metaphor

Kaatu vazhi kaalainga kazhuthu mani ketkaiyila namakadhu koil mani

Comparing the rustic sound of cattle neck-bells on a quiet forest path directly to sacred temple bells, representing how their love turns ordinary life into a divine experience.

Did you know?

Trivia

Although listed in the prompt context as unknown, this iconic song was composed by Maestro Ilaiyaraaja and sung by Kamal Haasan along with Shreya Ghoshal. Kamal Haasan wrote the lyrics using authentic south-Tamil rural dialect. 'Virumaandi' (2004) is acclaimed for introducing live telemetry sound recording to Tamil cinema and utilizing a dual-perspective narrative structure inspired by the Rashomon effect.

Keep listening

More from Virumaandi