that the film "... presents an effective diagnosis of entrenched corruption but the rather disturbing remedy it offers is, good old vigilantism." It concluded by saying that, though the film did well at the box-office, the message of rejecting the corrupt system instead of reforming it was troubling. T. S. V. Hari of Hindustan Times said that the director, Shankar, was not creative enough for the film and added this by saying "Sivaji turns out to be a rehash of all his previous jingoistic claptrap efforts". It appreciated the other technical departments and suggested a good response at the box office. The Times of India had a similar review about the story saying that "it had nothing new to offer" but promised it to be entertaining and gave it four stars. R G Vijayasarathy of Rediff.com summed the film by saying, "No logic, only Rajni's magic". About the story, he said, "Unfortunately, (the) message is lost in the maze of illogical and sometimes absurd sequences". The review, however, praised the performances of Rajinikanth, Shriya and Vivek and the technical crew. Sify wrote: "There is only one hero here, [..] – Rajni himself. Such is the overpowering screen presence of his cinematic charisma in every frame of the film. The film works big time as Shankar has made the film on a grand scale, [..] which is a visual treat with superbly choreographed action scenes. All this comes with top-of-the-line techno-finesse, perhaps the best ever in Tamil cinema" and also wrote that "Technically, [..] a revelation [..] there are stunning visuals, which is paisa vasool. K.V.Anand's cinematography is top class. Art director Thotta Tharani work is enticing, especially the sets in songs". Ananda Vikatan rated the film 41 out of 100. Accolades 2007 National Film Awards Won – Silver Lotus Award for Best Special Effects – M.S. Indian Artists, Chennai 2008 Filmfare Awards South Won – Filmfare Award for Best Music Director – A.R. Rahman Won – Filmfare Award for Best Cinematographer – K. V. Anand Won – Filmfare Best Art Director Award – Thotta Tharani Nominated – Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Rajinikanth Nominated – Filmfare Award for Best Film – Sivaji Nominated – Filmfare Award for Best Playback Singer Female – Chinmayi 2007 Vijay Awards Won – Vijay Award for Favourite Hero – Rajinikanth Nominated – Vijay Award for Favourite Heroine – Shriya Saran Won – Vijay Award