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Narthagi album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Vaan Mazhaiyin Thuligal

From Narthagi · 2011

Lyricist
Na. Muthu Kumar
Singers
Unnikrishnan, Sudha Raghunathan
Music director
G. V. Prakash Kumar
Movie name
Narthagi
Movie release year
2011
Lyrics added on
21 Oct 2018

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
……………………..
Vaan mazhaiyin thuligal
Aanin thuliyaa pennin thuliyaa
Paar kadalin alaigal
Aanin alaiyaa pennin alaiyaa
Kaatril aan pengal
Baedhamillai
Mazhaiyil veiyil kaatum
Vaanavillai
Iru nerkkodu inaiyum idathin
Uruvaam idhu vallavaa
Sivanai nee paarthaal
Sivan uruvam
Umaiyai nee paarthaal
Umai uruvam
Kann paarvai kaattaadha
Muzhu uruvam
Udalin dheiveega mozhiyaagum
Pudhu vadivam
Vaan mazhaiyin thuligal
Aanin thuliyaa pennin thuliyaa
Paar kadalin alaigal
Aanin alaiyaa pennin alaiyaa
Kadalin aazhaththai yaarum
Kandu sollalaam
Udalin aazhaththai yaarum
Kaana mudiyumaa
Kuzhandhai kaalathil
Oru udal oru udal
Valarndha kaalathil ver udalae
Sidhaiyil thee vaiththu
Eriththidum malaiyinil
Udalin urumaatram thodar kadhaiyae
Aangal enbadhum
Pengal enbadhum
Maaya thoatrangalae
Thiru nangai ival iru karai
Naduvinil odum nadhiyaa…aa..
Vaan mazhaiyin thuligal
Aanin thuliyaa pennin thuliyaa
Paar kadalin alaigal
Aanin alaiyaa pennin alaiyaa
Kaatril aan pengal
Baedhamillai
Mazhaiyil veiyil kaatum
Vaanavillai
Iru nerkkodu inaiyum idathin
Uruvaam idhu vallavaa
Sivanai nee paarthaal
Sivan uruvam
Umaiyai nee paarthaal
Umai uruvam
Kann paarvai kaattaadha
Muzhu uruvam
Udalin dheiveega mozhiyaagum
Pudhu vadivam
Vaan mazhaiyin thuligal
Aanin thuliyaa pennin thuliyaa
Paar kadalin alaigal
Aanin alaiyaa pennin alaiyaa
...
Are the raindrops from the sky
male drops or female drops?
Are the waves of this vast sea
male waves or female waves?
In the wind, there is no difference
between male and female.
Just like the rainbow revealed
by sunlight in the rain,
where two straight lines meet,
is this not the form that is born?
If you look for Shiva,
you see Shiva’s form.
If you look for Umai (Parvati),
you see Umai’s form.
A complete form that ordinary eyes
cannot fully see,
a new shape that becomes
the body's divine language.
Are the raindrops from the sky
male drops or female drops?
Are the waves of this vast sea
male waves or female waves?
Anyone can measure
and speak of the ocean's depth.
But can anyone ever see
the true depth of the body?
In childhood,
there is just one body;
as we grow up, it becomes another.
When lit with fire on the funeral pyre
at the burning ground,
the body's transformation is a never-ending story.
Being a man
and being a woman
are only illusions.
Is this transgender woman
a river flowing between both banks?
Are the raindrops from the sky
male drops or female drops?
Are the waves of this vast sea
male waves or female waves?
In the wind, there is no difference
between male and female.
Just like the rainbow revealed
by sunlight in the rain,
where two straight lines meet,
is this not the form that is born?
If you look for Shiva,
you see Shiva’s form.
If you look for Umai (Parvati),
you see Umai’s form.
A complete form that ordinary eyes
cannot fully see,
a new shape that becomes
the body's divine language.
Are the raindrops from the sky
male drops or female drops?
Are the waves of this vast sea
male waves or female waves?
Chorus
Male
Female
Male
Female
Male
Female
Male
Female
Chorus
Female
Male
Male
Female

Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

This poignant song from the movie Narthagi questions society's rigid gender binaries by drawing parallels with nature. It asks whether rain drops or ocean waves can be gendered, arguing that gender constructs are superficial human illusions. The lyrics invoke the sacred concept of Ardhanarishvara (the combined divinity of Shiva and Parvati) to illustrate that male and female energies exist harmoniously within a single form.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Rhetorical Question (Vinaa Aani)

“Aanin thuliyaa pennin thuliyaa”

Asking whether raindrops or ocean waves are male or female forces the listener to realize that nature does not adhere to human gender constructs.

Metaphor (Uvamaani)

“Thiru nangai ival iru karai Naduvinil odum nadhiyaa”

Comparing a transgender woman to a river flowing gracefully between two riverbanks (male and female banks).

Religious Allusion

“Sivanai nee paarthaal Sivan uruvam Umaiyai nee paarthaal Umai uruvam”

Invoking Shiva and Parvati (Uma) to reference the composite form of Ardhanarishvara, legitimizing gender variance as divine.

Did you know?

Trivia

Narthagi (2011) is one of Tamil cinema's pioneering films focused on the lives and struggles of transgender women. The soundtrack was composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar, with lyrics penned by Late Na. Muthukumar.

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