“Nenjukulle,†a Tamil song composed by the Oscar-winning musician A.R. Rahman, seems poised to be this season's breakout social media hit, days after it was first broadcast on Nov. 3 during “Unplugged,†a program on MTV India.
Sung by 24-year-old Shakthisree Gopalan, the mellifluous song features in the Tamil film “Kadal,†which is directed and produced by Mani Ratnam and is slated for a December release.
The lyrics were penned by the Tamil poet and lyricist Vairamuthu. The opening lines of the song roughly translate to:
In my heart
I've tied you
In my heart
I've tied you
I don't know in which direction my day rose?
You gave me a sweet glance
And this heart of mine became a mirror glazed by water
A five-minute video posted on the MTV India Web site, featuring Ms. Gopa lan and Mr. Rahman, accompanied by an orchestra, was viewed over 139,000 times by Monday evening and received 44,000 likes on Facebook.
Ms. Gopalan, a relative newcomer, has also co-sung the title song of the Bollywood film “Jab Tak Hai Jaan,†starring Shah Rukh Khan, which comes out Tuesday.
The fast-growing popularity of “Nenjukulle†is reminiscent of the success of “Why This Kolaveri Di†last year, a Tamil song interlaced with bits of English, which ultimately became an international sensation. Whether an all-Tamil song can create the same magic remains to be seen.
