 But pretty soon you wish debutante director P V Ravi had concentrated as much on his screenplay as he did in naming the film", calling it a "love-story that lacks spice".Sify wrote, "if there's only one reason which makes "Mahesh Saranya Matrum Palar" watchable is Shakti...He is in very good form even though the film isn't, with its old-fashioned plot points and characters.But it's not entirely unwatchable due to the manner in which it is narrated and the final twist in the story".