To understand the lyrics, one must first understand the medium. "Wal Chithra Katha" emerged in the late 1970s and peaked during the 1980s and 1990s. Following economic liberalization in 1977, cheap printing technology flooded the market. Small-time publishers in areas like Pettah (Colombo) and Galle began producing stapled booklets of adult comics.

If found, such lyrics usually share these features:

This is where the concept of "text" became vital. Readers didn't just look at the pictures; they read the stories. The "katha" (story) was just as important as the "chithra" (picture).