An oppari is an ancient form of lamenting[1] in southern India, particularly in Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, and North-Eastern Sri Lanka.
The oppari is typically sung by a group of women relatives who came to pay respects to the departed in a death ceremony.
The songs do not follow a set pattern; rather, the lyrics are sung impromptu, mostly improvised, and eulogise the person who has died.
"You were a freedom fighter, you worked with Subhash Chandra Bose, for six months you went to Germany," she wails, beating the ground with her hands.
I found her photograph one day and you told me all about her, though my mother, whom you married when you came back to India after Independence, was angry.