New Year hath come and I open my account this year by translating partly another Tamil song - a beautiful romantic duet, full of yearning and unrequited love. Do see this song in youtube and try to ignore an obese aging Shivaji Ganeshan. Radha looks beautiful even in the unpretentious garb of a village belle and the background is awesomely picturesque...the music of Ilayaraja and the meaningful lyrics of Vairamuthu and the setting of the song, all come together to render it the ultimate expression of yearning in sublime love. I have just translated the first half of this song.
In this translation...I loved the rustic, poetic expressions of Vairamuthu so much that I tried to remain as close as possible to it and yet make the idiom meaningful in English...so as to give flavour of a Tamil poem...which generally makes an inspired use of picturesque in terms of simple, down to earth analogies.
For e.g. line "meththa vaanginaen thookkaththa vaangala" literally means - I got the bedding, but not any sleep ...which means I couldnt find any sleep. In my translation I kept the sleep analogy, though I express it more in terms of feelings, like I usually prefer to do.
Every stanza in Tamil is immediately followed by its translation in English. In some cases I have given pretty different meaning, just to conform with the overall flow of the translated song.
The normal font is the guy singing and the italian font is the lady singing.
Song Title: Poongatru Thirumbama
Movie Name: Mudhal Mariyadhai
Singer: Janaki S, Malaysia Vasudevan
Music Director: Ilayaraja
Lyrics: Vairamuthu
Year: 1985
Director: Bharathiraja
Actors: Radha, Shivaji
poongaatru thirumbumaa en paatta virumbumaa
thaalaatta madiyil vechchup paaraatta
enakkoru thaay madi kedaikkumaa
Will this breeze turn and blow my way
Will it now note my ode of yearning
Will it caress me with its kind love
And sweep me away in its melodious lullaby
raasaavae varuththamaa aagaayam surungumaa
aengaadhae adha olagam thaangaadhae
adukkumaa sooriyan karukkumaa
Even if I were as high as the skies
Your sadness would wither me
This sky would bow to your yearning unbearable
And wonder will it be blessed by sunlight
enna solluvaen ennullam thaangala
meththa vaanginaen thookkaththa vaangala
Overwhelmed by feelings
I am rendered speechless
Such restlessness that not even a featherbed
Could provide a moment of rest
indha vaedhana yaarukkuththaan illa
onna meeravae oorukkul aalilla
Do you think that
I am not afflicted as much
But for you
Who else resides in this heart
aedhoa enbaattukku naan paattup paadi
sollaadha soagaththa sonnaenadi
Dazed by this affliction
I roam about like a madman
Tis unspeakable suffering
Yet I cry my heart out to you
soga raga soagandhaanae (2)
Isnt our pain mutual?
yaaradhu poaradhu
kuyil paadalaam than mugam kaattumaa
Who is thus echoing my heartache
Will not the kind songbird show her face
4 comments:
Erm somehow i wasn't touched by this one..
finish the song...?
well yeah Meenie, I kinda agree with u...reading it after a few days, even I am not moved. But I was really moved when I heard the song and wrote these lines. Its the music and the concept of picturization - where the two ppl search for each other across fields and river etc.Probably if u see the song and then read this, it will have an affect :)
Neha: Sorry yaar...I was too lazy to go on. :)
A very nice attempt.Would have been better if you have finished the song. It is such a beautiful song.
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