
She concluded that the film was "at times obviously sermonising" but "still worthy of notice". It is in execution that director Anbazhagan falters a little". Similarly, Malathi Rangarajan from The Hindu wrote: "The aim is lofty, the theme, noble. The reviewer further wrote: "Anbazhagan's intentions are quite commendable but the sad thing is that he goes about this task with less subtlety and more sermonizing, with the result that the scenes where he wishes to make a point come across as totally preachy". Suganth from The Times of India gave it 4 out of 5 and claimed that Saattai was a "commercial potboiler dressed up as arty fare". Sify's critic described the film as a "decent entertainer which harps loudly on the message it wants to convey", noting that director M Anbazhgan "has neatly worked the film around kani’s character but at times it becomes too preachy and sentimental".
