One of the first Tamil words I picked up was "sarakku சரக்கு". It means goods, commodity, or merchandise. It could refer to items in a shop, products being imported, or things being traded.
But only in Malaysia (and Singapore) the meaning has changed. In colloquial speech "sarakku" also means "girl" or "girls" as in "kaaleej sarakku" (college girls) or "anda kilaable romba sarakku irukku" (lots of girls in that club). You could say "Are you trying to hit on some random 'sarakku'?"
Strangely, guys aren't referred to as "sarakku". It's only one way. "sarakku" is strictly for referring to "pomblei" (colloquial pronunciation of "peNpiLLai", the Tamil word for girl). Guys are "amblei" (colloquial pronunciation of "aaNpiLLai").
Tamils from India, Sri Lanka, and outside Malaysia soon learn from the locals this other meaning of "sarakku". But formal writing and speaking still maintain the original meaning of "sarakku", which is goods. So you won't hear a news broadcast or public speech using "sarakku" to refer to girls, and neither will a sentence in a Tamil book, magazine, or newspaper.
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