Kadiyo Diyo Lyrics by Nalin Perera

Kadiyo diyo diyo,
don’t be a frog in a well,
bloom, blossom, blossom,
like flowers, you young lasses,
think it over, think, think,
rampe, sera, curry-leaf,
say it sweet, say it tasty,
baila tunes, the kaffir-baila folk

Why the long face – smile, it’s all just grand,
I’ll give you treats tastier than tasty – Abu Nana’s watalappan,
ready and up for the game – my heart’s fit for anything,
let’s bathe in Kuttan pond – if you’re set with me, I’m on

Kadiyo diyo diyo

At Mount Lavinia beach – shall we stand catching the moon,
the star-carnival, as always – stay close till dawn, machan,
let’s go all decked out and dazzling – off on a sweet little outing,
rap and soul, classic reggae – throw on some baila and dance it right

Kadiyo diyo diyo …

This is a pure feel-good baila, a bouncy, teasing invitation to lighten up and have fun. The chorus is deliberate wordplay, a string of rhyming, half-nonsense sounds, kadiyo diyo diyo, that carries one clear message inside it: don’t be a frog in a well, the Sinhala phrase for someone narrow-minded and closed off. Bloom like a flower, it tells the girls, loosen up, and it drops in kitchen herbs (rampe, sera, curry-leaf) and baila styles purely for the joy of the rhyme.

The verses are a boy’s flirty pitch. Why the long face, he teases, smile, everything’s grand; he promises treats sweeter than sweet, Abu Nana’s watalappan, the rich Malay-Muslim pudding, says his heart is fit for anything, and suggests a swim in the village pond, if you’re set with me, I’m on. It is courtship at its most easygoing and playful.

The last verse widens into a whole night out: catching the moon at Mount Lavinia beach, staying close till dawn under a star-carnival, going out dressed to dazzle, and dancing to rap, reggae, classic and baila. There is no hidden depth here and none is meant. It is a celebration of youth, flirtation and dancing, sung with a wink by Nalin Perera to words by Athula Kaldemulla, and the whole point is the fun of the sounds and the invitation to join in.