Rosalina Lyrics by Marians

Rosalina… Rosalina… Rosalina…
My Rosalina…

Irene got angry with me
Catherine ran off and left
Magilin went away to Dubai
Every one of them left me with nobody
Irene got angry with me
Catherine ran off and left
Magilin went away to Dubai
Every one of them left me with nobody

Don’t, don’t, don’t, please don’t go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, please don’t go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, please don’t go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t leave me and go

Rosalina… Rosalina… Rosalina…
My Rosalina… //

Because my hair is long
Because I’m too skinny
Because I have nothing in my pocket
My Irene got angry with me
Because of the music
I killed my sleep all night long
And dozed off the whole day
So my Catherine ran off and left

Don’t, don’t, don’t, please don’t go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, please don’t go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, please don’t go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t leave me and go

Rosalina… Rosalina… Rosalina…
My Rosalina… //

She kept asking me for money
She kept giving me trouble
And because I said no, I didn’t have it
My Magilin went off to Dubai
So love me, Rosalina,
don’t go leaving me
Stay close here beside me
You are my treasure of gold

Don’t, don’t, don’t, please don’t go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, please don’t go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, please don’t go
Don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t leave me and go

Rosalina… Rosalina… Rosalina…
My Rosalina… ////

This is one of those cheeky, fun songs that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The young man singing it has terrible luck with women, and he runs through the list: Irene got fed up and left, Catherine ran off, Magilin packed up for Dubai. One by one they have all walked out on him, and now he is down to his last hope, a girl named Rosalina, and the whole song is him begging her, “don’t, don’t, please don’t leave me too.”

Half the charm is in the reasons the others gave up on him, and he is honest enough to admit they are all his own fault. Irene left because his hair was too long, he was too thin, and there was never any money in his pocket. Catherine left because he stayed up all night for his music and then slept the whole day away, useless. Magilin kept asking him for money, and when he had none to give, off she went to Dubai. Going to the Gulf for work is a very real Sri Lankan story, many people leave for jobs in places like Dubai, so the line lands with a knowing laugh, his girl chose a paycheck abroad over a broke musician at home.

By the last verse he is pouring on the sweetness, calling Rosalina his “ran kanda,” literally a “bough of gold” or a treasure of gold, a common Sinhala term of endearment for someone precious. After being dumped three times he has learned his lesson and he is holding on tight, asking her to stay close and not abandon him.

What makes it work is how lightly it carries its own heartbreak. There is nothing tragic here, it is a man laughing at his own bad luck and his own flaws, the long hair, the empty wallet, the lazy mornings, while still pleading sincerely for the one girl who is left. Anyone who has ever felt like the unlucky one in love will grin at this, and the repeated “epa, epa, yanna epa” chorus is the kind of catchy plea you find yourself humming long after.