On Zoya Akhtar's birthday, revisiting her first film 'Luck By Chance'

When 'Luck By Chance' released, it received a lukewarm response at the box office. A story of an aspiring actor from Delhi Vikram Jaisingh (Farhan Akhtar) who lands in Mumbai to fulfil his dream of becoming a Bollywood superstar, the film beautifully captured how scores of artistes come to Mumbai on a daily basis to try their luck in the film industry.

No film gave such a realistic picture of how the film industry functions the way 'Luck By Chance' did. From nepotism to insecure superstars to casting couch- the film brilliantly highlighted the stark reality of Bollywood.

The film had Konkana Sen Sharma playing starlet Sona Mishra who faces casting couch - a phenomenon that has been rampant in the film industry. Akhtar highlighted a grave fact- that how actors are often asked for sexual favours in return of roles in the film.

The story also highlighted the rampant nepotism that exists in the film industry. Isha Sharvani played Nikki Walia a star kid, whose mother played by Dimple Kapadia was a yesteryear star. Kapadia's character was that of a typical star mom, who would go any length to make her daughter a star - who may not be as keen to have a film career if given a choice.

While the story primarily focussed on Vikram and Sona and their struggle, it also focussed on producer Rommy Rolly (Rishi Kapoor) and his family who have been in the business of filmmaking for decades.

Many prominent stars had cameo appearances in the film. Hrithik Roshan played an insecure superstar Zaffar Khan who faces tough competition from newbie Vikram and one of the most poignant scenes in the film featured Shah Rukh Khan as himself giving advice to a new actor like Vikram on how to survive the big bad world of Bollywood.