Luck by Chance
Luck by Chance is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language drama film written and directed by Zoya Akhtar in her directorial debut. Produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, it stars Farhan Akhtar and Konkana Sen Sharma in lead roles, with Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Juhi Chawla, Sanjay Kapoor, Isha Sharvani, Alyy Khan and Sheeba Chaddha in pivotal supporting roles and Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan in special appearance. Guest stars and industry folk starring as themselves included Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Akshaye Khanna, Kareena Kapoor, Rani Mukerji, Karan Johar, Manish Malhotra, Ranbir Kapoor, John Abraham, Vivek Oberoi, Rajkumar Hirani, Boman Irani and Anurag Kashyap in cameos. The film shows the journey of an aspiring actor who arrives in Mumbai to become a movie star. How he finds himself riding his fortune to becoming one, while struggling to sustain his relationships, forms the story. Luck by Chance released on 30 January 2009, and was a moderate commercial success. However, it received widespread critical acclaim, with major praise for its novel concept, story, screenplay, dialogues and performances of the cast. At the 55th Filmfare Awards, Luck by Chance received 5 nominations, including Best Supporting Actor (Rishi) and Best Supporting Actress (Kapadia), and won Best Debut Director (Zoya, tying with Ayan Mukerji for Wake Up Sid). Plot
Vikram is a young actor from Delhi, who arrives in Mumbai to make it as a Bollywood film star. He seeks help from Abhimanyu, an actor friend from his hometown. Through Abhimanyu, Vikram meets Sona, a young actress, and the two become romantically involved. Sona works in regional films, but hopes to land bigger mainstream roles through her association with small-time producer, Satish. When Satish secures funding for a new project, Sona visits him expecting to be cast as the second lead, but he turns her down. She becomes distraught but composes herself as Satish's wife enters the van. On the pretext of being there to drop photographs of her cousin, she leaves behind snaps of Vikram from his latest photoshoot with Satish, and then quickly leaves. Satish's wife likes the photos, and forwards them to Romy's team. Romy is one of the biggest producers, who is currently casting for the lead role in his next movie. Vikram is invited to audition along with dozens of other young actors. At a film fraternity party, Vikram crosses paths with Neena, a famous actress past her prime. Knowing that her daughter, Nikki, has been cast in Romy's film, Vikram grandly compliments her. She reacts favourably despite his exaggerations, and becomes instrumental in him getting the part. Vikram and Sona celebrate him landing the lead role. The next day, Vikram leaves for the film's outdoor shoot with Nikki, Romy, the director Ranjit, and Neena. On set, Vikram stokes everyone's egos to keep them happy, while also casually flirting with Nikki. Nikki is smitten by him, and sneaks into his room at night. Vikram lies about being single, while giving in to Nikki's charms. The two start a secret affair, though it soon becomes obvious to the film's crew. Sona arrives at the hotel where the cast is staying to surprise Vikram. He acts unexpectedly cold towards her, confirming her suspicions of a blossoming romance between him and Nikki. Neena gets suspicious as well, and advises them to maintain the image of being 'eligibly single' for the sake of the film's success. The shoot ends, and the crew return to Mumbai. Back home, news of the affair has leaked out. Sona's friend, who works at a tabloid, writes a scathing piece depicting Vikram as a crafty manipulator, who successfully conned three women - Neena, Nikki and Sona - before even rising to stardom. Vikram and Nikki have a fight and break up. Sona is upset and locks herself up from the media, but Vikram lands at her doorstep, accusing her of being responsible for the article. Eventually, the film is released and becomes a superhit. Vikram becomes an overnight star, buying an expensive new home and making new friends in the industry. At a party, Vikram meets his idol Shah Rukh Khan, who notices that he keeps his friends waiting. Shah Rukh advises Vikram to not forget those who stood by him before he was famous. Taking heed of this, Vikram visits Sona and apologizes for his affair with Nikki. He expresses guilt, but Sona walks out of his life despite him having become a movie star. While driving away, Sona reflects on her life, feeling content at leading a comfortable, independent life, despite never making it as a major film star. Meanwhile, Nikki is hurt by Vikram's conduct in the relationship, however, Neena then speaks to her urging her to take advantage of the popularity of her relationship with Vikram and the publicity from it instead of pushing it away. Neena in passing starts to mention how she too had to go through several tribulations to become an established star to make her mark in the industry. 