Luck by Chance (2009)

When Vikram gets tapped to play the male lead in a Bollywood film, he can't believe his luck. But it may ruin his relationship with his girlfriend.

Director:

Zoya Akhtar

Writers:

Zoya Akhtar (story & screenplay), Javed Akhtar (dialogue)

Stars:

Farhan Akhtar, Konkona Sen Sharma, Rishi Kapoor

6 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Farhan Akhtar	...	Vikram Jaisingh
Konkona Sen Sharma	...	Sona Mishra
Rishi Kapoor	...	Romy Rolly
Dimple Kapadia	...	Neena Walia
Isha Sharvani	...	Nikki Walia
Sanjay Kapoor	...	Ranjit Rolly
Juhi Chawla	...	Minty Romy Rolly
Hrithik Roshan	...	Zaffar Khan
Alyy Khan	...	Satish Chaudhary
Sheeba Chaddha
Arjun Mathur	...	Abhimanyu Gupta
Sid Makkar
Pankaj Kalra	...	Raju - Sona's agent
Megha Narkar	...	Laxmi - Dance Instructor
Ashish Sawhny	...	Tanvir (as Ashish Sawhney)

Storyline

Refusing the accept the same fate as her sisters, Tara and Meghna, and get married to a boy from the same Caste, Kanpur-based Sona Mishra alienates herself from her accountant father, and re-locates to Mumbai in order to act in movies. She meets with Satish Chaudhary who offers to assist her in getting a lead role. Years later, all he could manage was bit parts, leaving her frustrated but hopeful. She meets with another struggling actor, Vikram Jaisingh, and both become fairly intimate. When a lead role with Satish does not materialize, and his wife, Pinky, becomes suspicious, she decides to depart. Disappointment and shock also await Vikram when he is candidly told by his friend, Abhimanyu Gupta, that he has no talent and must consider returning back in Delhi to assist his businessman father. It does look like the end of the road for both Sona and Vikram - leaving the question open whether they will continue with their relationship &/or return to their respective homes.

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Plot Keywords:

looking at oneself in a mirror | luck | f rated | title directed by female | chance meeting | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Amir Khan and Shahrukh Khan shared the screen earlier in 1993 released Pehla Nasha along with Saif Ali Khan, Rahul Roy and Sudesh Berry. They all are shown in a dream sequence. Director of movie is Ashutosh Gowariker.

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Quotes

Romy Rolly: Nikki is a crocodile in a chiffon saree.

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Crazy Credits

The actual movie shows Konkona winning a new Godrej Fridge towards the end of the movie through a lucky draw. However in the credits, the name goes as Videocon Fridge Guy. While Videocon is another manufacturer of electrical appliances.

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Connections

Spoofs A Fistful of Dollars (1964)

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Soundtracks

Baawre
Written by Javed Akhtar
Composed by Shankar Mahadevan, Loy Mendonsa and Ehsaan Noorani
Performed by Shankar Mahadevan, Loy Mendonsa, Ila Arun, Mumay Khan,
Babu Khan, Manzoor Khan and Rajab Khan
Courtesy of Big Music

User Reviews

LUCK BY CHANCE: Beginner's Luck?

As a filmmaker (or perhaps a filmmaker-to-be), I often find myself thinking more about the process of film-making itself as opposed to what that process should be used to present. Such is the case with Zoya Akhtar's debut film, Luck By Chance. "Write what you know" they say and it feels that she's tried to do exactly that.

Hot on the heels of the last Excel Productions film, Rock On!!, Luck By Chance marks the entry of the Farhan Akhtar's sister into the world of films and it's the world of films that she decides to deal with.

And rather than offering us a soup or salad to whet or appetites, she gets right into things with a thali- full of delights.

The set-up of the film is efficient and the title sequence is one of the most poignant tributes to Indian cinema that I've seen in some time. We instantly know that we will be covering a lot of ground. The plot-lines are many and varied: There's Sona Mishra's (Konkona Sen Sharma) struggle to become an established first tier heroine; there's Romy Rolly's (Rishi Kapoor) struggle to make a blockbuster film while balancing the airs of uppity celebrities; there's Zaffar Khan's (Hrithik Roshan) struggle to maintain some semblance of a normal life amidst extreme adulation and fame; there's Neena Wallia's (Dimple Kapadia) struggle to make sure her daughter follows in her footsteps and becomes a big star; and at the forefront is Vikram Jaisingh's (Farhan Akhtar) struggle to tie all of these plot lines together while he treats every other character as a rung on the ladder to the top.

Most of the performances are top-notch. Rishi Kapoor is completely over-the-top, Dimple Kapadia is super scary and Hrithik Roshan stands out as the straight man amidst all the hijinks. Zoya Akhtar peppers the narrative with minor characters, many a celebrity character and observations on the nature of the industry. While these references are whizzing past with every scene, one minor complaint is that instead of being the perceptive views of an insider they pander to the clichés that one associates with Bollywood. But that's a relatively unimportant issue when we see how much is dealt with.

It's a wonder that the script is able to handle all of these threads (and many more) to weave a rich tapestry of the "Hindi Film Industry". In spite of moments of confusion, we are treated to everything from the corporate side of Bollywood to the dedication of theatre actors to their muse. And while it's commendable that all of this manages to stay coherent, it does make us lose track of who or what we should be following.

While Vikram's story seems to be the one we should be following, a second act turn makes us wonder what we are really invested in. And while this is an interesting approach, it isn't helped by the fact that the story begins to meander and almost reduces itself to a series of gags and oh-look-it's-so-and-so- celebrity situations. Rather than building to a resounding climax, it limps it's way across the finish line to an ending that is quite brave and down-to- earth but at the same time unexpected and a tad undeserved.

In fact it's not very dissimilar to the trailer for the film. It starts as a light-hearted satire on today's Bollywood and descends into sentimentality and heavy-handedness. By trying to have the ostentatious song-and-dance sequence along with a certain cynicism, it balances along and uneven tone and one feels the Zoya Akhtar wants to have her cake and eat it too.

Having said that, I do think it's a great first effort and there is just too much in this film to leave disappointed. It's great to see an intelligent voice shine through and hopefully once Ms. Akhtar achieves the catharsis she seems to desire, she moves beyond the realm of what she knows to what she wants to know.

*** stars out of *****

Details

Country:

India

Language:

Hindi English

Release Date:

30 January 2009 (India)

Also Known As:

Liebe, Glück und andere Zufälle

Filming Locations:

Aksa Beach, Malad, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$217,439, 1 February 2009

Gross USA:

$356,019

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$4,504,365

Company Credits

Production Co:

Excel Entertainment, Reliance Big Pictures

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color