I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

This movie is the heights of nepotism in Bollywood, even as it makes fun of nepotism. Farhan is a joke as an actor, good director, I'll give him that, but I do not find him convincing in KCK/LBC/ZNMD, he is not a natural actor, he acts as if he is doing it to show someone how to perform the scene (like a director). The story and screenplay by Zoya is dull and clichéd. A lot of characters in the movie are beyond annoying, like Juhi Chawla's character. She was never a good actor anyways, so when she plays an over the top character, it makes it unbearable to watch. There are couple of good moments, like when Anurag Kashyap rewrites script to meet Zafar's demands. Rishi Kapoor also puts in another seasoned performance. But nothing else is new or fresh. Zoya/Farhan, you are in Bollywood only because of Javedji. And thus we are stuck with 2nd grade talent, the kids/nieces/nephews/etc. and the sorry state of Bollywood.

With the changing tides in Indian commercial cinema and the recent arrival of truly original,smart and creative directors to the Bollywood scene,one can now truly be hopeful of CHANGE in the way films are made here in India. But for all such intelligent films we've had here in recent times,we haven't had one which is able to set itself in this very world of "over the top" Bollywood and poke fun at it through subtle satire. Well Luck By Chance is precisely a subtle satirical look at the way things work in Bollywood along with being a wonderful coming of age film about the journey of two struggling actors. And Zoya Akhtar is a name we can safely add to the list of new age Indian directors looking to Raise The Bar and make Real cinemaIt's the story of Vikram Jaisingh(Farhan Akhtar),A Delhi boy who arrives in Mumbai to follow his dreams of being an Actor.Scoffed at by his family and even discouraged by friends, Vikram realizes that to get a big role in Bollywood ,you should either already be a star or be a star's son .But he finds support in another small time actress Shona (Konkana Sen Sharma), looking to make a name for herself in Bollywood.The film charts the separate journeys of these two and the role of Luck and street smartness in building a successful career in films.Perspicacious Vikram is able to land a big break as a lead in a big production house's film after winning the Charms of a yesteryear's superstar(Dimple Kapadia) whose daughter is being LAUNCHED in that very film.Shona, on the other hand repeatedly falls prey to the Sycophantic and unethical ways of the industry while having to make do with small ,inconsequential roles.What makes the film standout is the wonderfully layered script incorporating starkly real characters set in the industry ,like the overtly superstitious veteran film producer Romi Rolly,who swears by traditional Bollywood diktats and the general satirical tone of the film,which without being preachy is able to convincingly portray the workings of Bollywood while giving us a unique coming of age story. Farhan Akhtar's underplayed performance is the driving force behind the film as he keeps it consistently real,also being astonishingly emotive in the Dramatic scenes. The film does drag a little bit towards the end , but is successfully able to convey the message, as the lead character quotes in the 1st half "Success and Failure are just choices we make".All in all, a very impressive first feature by Zoya Akhtar

The opening scene of director Zoya Akhtar's Luck By Chance sets the mood for the two-and-half hours or so that follow. In this scene Konkona Sensharma who stars as a struggling actress finds herself being indirectly and indecently propositioned by a sleazy film producer. It's a humorous scene because the casting couch is one of Bollywood's oldest clichés and because Aly Khan who plays the producer in question, performs that scene remarkably, giving her just the kind of smarmy lines you know you should never believe. But that scene is also dark and disturbing at the same time, especially when the camera stays on Konkona's uncomfortable expression in the end. You realise she wants the job so bad, she's going to accept his advances knowing fully well she's doing something wrong. Luck By Chance is an insider look at Bollywood, and about making it in the big, bad world of showbiz. And indeed it's a bad world. A world where friends are used and abused, where lovers are replaced overnight, where mothers manipulate their daughters, and where you're only as important as your last hit. At the same time, director Zoya Akhtar's affection for the film industry is evident in her comic, often lovable take on the business and its people who she's observed so closely as an insider herself. The film then is a deeply layered portrait of an industry quite unlike any other, a sharp observation of the grime behind the glamour, the insecurities behind the smiling faces. The film follows Farhan Akhtar and Konkona Sensharma, both playing wannabe actors, who walk the walk and talk the talk and do everything it takes to realise their dreams. Both compromise on their principles to get ahead, but while one is successful, the other is not quite, this disparity ultimately driving a wedge through their relationship. Intuitively written by Akhtar herself, Luck By Chance is both insightful and funny. The film serves up a palette of colorful characters who may seem like caricatures on the outside but come packed with emotional depth and even a tinge of sad back-story. Chief among these is greasy old-school film producer Romi Rolly (played astoundingly by Rishi Kapoor) who, at one point we see break down when a superstar he created won't return his calls. Or the yesteryear siren-turned-pushy star-mum (played by Dimple Kapadia) who makes a shocking confession when confronted by her exasperated daughter. Akhtar also succeeds in keeping the mood light when necessary, packing a bagful of in-jokes, several delivered by the very characters they're aimed at. It's sporting of Sanjay Kapoor to play the failed actor brother of a big producer who turns his sights to direction, or Anurag Kashyap who's cast as the writer-with-a-serious-bent bullied into plagiarizing a foreign film, or even Hrithik Roshan as the superstar heartthrob caught up in his own image. Prepare to be pleasantly surprised by all the stars who make fleeting cameos, and watch how cleverly Akhtar uses them - Akshaye Khanna forever the pensive, indecisive fellow, Aamir Khan the actor never entirely satisfied with his shot, and Abhishek Bachchan who knows how to politely say no and who ends every conversation with an affectionate hello from his daddy. Despite its languid pace, Luck By Chance is rarely boring because it's got a solid story at its heart and the characters arouse such empathy. The film is helped considerably by razor-sharp dialogue and keen casting, and the acting is consistently first-rate. Farhan Akhtar delivers a simple-enough likable performance that is just what the film required - no showy flourishes, no loud outbursts, just a straight off spontaneous act that works like a dream. Konkona Sensharma proves yet again she's the go-to-girl for complex, layered characters, and she does a swell job of investing heart and poignancy into the picture. In smaller roles, Juhi Chawla shines as the doting Mrs Rolly, and Isha Sharwani hits the right note as the not-very-bright star-kid; Dimple Kapadia is terrific as the has-been star who is so easily seduced by a youngster's praise; and Hrithik Roshan never disappoints, in fact look out for that scene in which he responds to street urchins from inside his car, he's an actor who doesn't need dialogue to communicate. A word of praise also for the lesser-known but abundantly talented Arjun Mathur who so convincingly portrays Farhan's friend and fellow acting aspirant who clashes with him. My personal favorite though remains Rishi Kapoor who leaves his stamp all over the film as the hilarious Romi Rolly. A significant debut by director Zoya Akhtar, Luck By Chance is heartwarming and heart-breaking in equal measures; look closely at those layers beneath the laughs. An impressive achievement both in writing and direction, the film is full of witty moments and sharp observations that stay with you, starting with the opening credits sequence which is the best I've in years.It's that rare Hindi film that deserves a repeat viewing just to savour its charm all over again.

"Luck By Chance" has most of the hallmarks of a typical Bollywood production: shimmering visuals, eye-popping colors and costumes, and gorgeous young performers all placed in the service of a slick-fiction melodrama, punctuated by elaborately choreographed song-and-dance numbers that play like glittery shampoo commercials on steroids. The difference here is that since it is Bollywood itself that is the subject of the film, writer/director Zoya Akhtar gets to indulge in some mild self-criticism aimed at a few of the weaknesses inherent in the industry. For instance, the movie questions why nepotism seemingly plays so large a role in the hiring of actors and actresses, an inside-joke, one assumes, since Akhtar chose her own brother, Farhan, to play the lead character in this film. It also makes fun of the fact that no self-respecting mainstream Indian film would be caught dead without at least a half a dozen musical sequences, even though they are rarely germane to the plot or integral to the theme. That doesn't, however, keep the makers of "Luck By Chance" from fulfilling their mandated quota of said sequences. Apparently, iconoclasm will take one only so far when there are box office receipts at stake."Luck By Chance" tells of an aspiring young actor named Vikram (Akhtar) who lands the lead role in what is described to us as "a big-budget thriller/musical love story." His sudden success becomes a cause of dissension between him and his girlfriend, Sona (Konkona Sen Sharma), since she is herself a struggling actress and has been unable to pick up more than mere bit parts in unimpressive films up to this point. She also becomes jealous of Vikram's co-star, the lovely Nikki Walia (Isha Sarvani), whose over-controlling mother (Dimple Kapadia) was a famous movie actress herself in the 1970s.In terms of dramaturgy and audience attention-spans, the story could definitely use some tightening, but it does capture some of the frustration, heartbreak and disappointment of trying to make it in the "biz." It also points out the capricious nature of filmdom success, making the case that it is often nothing more than sheer luck - of being at the right place at the right time or of having that indefinable "something" that sets one apart from all others - that ultimately determines who will make it as a star and who will not.The romantic scenes are nicely played by Akhtar and Sharma, but there's no getting around the fact that the movie itself runs on for such an unconscionable length of time (over two-and-a-half-hours) that audiences (Western audiences, at least) are bound to lose interest in the story quite a ways prior to its actual completion. That's a shame because there's much that is likable and charming about "Luck By Chance."