Luck By Chance |  2009-01-29

The Bitch is getting a lot of flak for praising this one

By chance a friend asked me before the late night preview show of the film began. "Which is your back to back film?" I blanked out. At 2am in the morning, on my way back home, the answer came as an epiphany. "This is my back to back film."



"Auto, wapas chalo," I almost skidded back. Only, I couldn‘t go back to the theatre to roll the film again, but in my recall, I was awestruck for encore.

Count my stars, yes am counting. How many stars can you spot in ‘Luck By Chance‘?

A film about strugglers has got to be peppered with as many stars you can pack in for a film‘s luck at the ticket window.

But before I review, a film where Farhan Akhtar is the struggler? His hunger as a struggler is about as sincere as a Lokhandwala beefcake mulling over his cup of cappuccino at CCD (Cafe Coffee Day).

Once you let that notion float away, you know the film is about the luck dice rolling on a casino roulette where the stakes are very-very high.



‘Luck By Chance‘ is a colourful maze of people changing colours so often; it‘s surreal when things can be this real. To get under the skin of the character, actors have to apply so many coatings of war paint, with each peel, a shade shadier.

"Mera wala pink" if you thought, naah, pink just got navy blued here. Coco Chanel by love.

The film begins with Sona (Konkona Sen) arriving in the city to make it. She quickly becomes the starlet waiting for the big one, doing Bhojpuri films and ‘Teer Aur Talwar‘ type potboilers to pay for her bags. Vikram (Farhan Actor) hones his Delhi boy skills at Nand Kishore Institute of ham-acting. Zaffar Khan (Hrithik Roshan) short changes his mentor Rolly Polly‘s (Rishi Kapoor) film to bag a K-Jo plum pudding project. Vikram‘s lucky run in with Neena Walia (Dimple Kapadia), mother of Nikki Walia (Isha Sharvani) lands him the lead role in ‘Dil Ki Aag‘, being produced by Rolly and directed by Ranjit (Sanjay Kapoor). Sona is Vikram‘s girlfriend before he gets his big break, after which she‘s history.



When you can have Aamir Khan grandly opening your film and Shahrukh Khan giving it a subtle closure, what have you struggled for Miss Zoya Akhtar? You‘re one lucky girl, no two chances about that. Given the clout you Akhtars now have in the industry, which idiot would say no to appear in your ensemble cast.

I have always held my own, not wanting to see Farhan Actor, only Farhan Director, but in a scene where he has an emotional outburst, I dropped my guard and will hike up Pali Hill to give him a hug.

Konkona is my fave gal. She is simply flawless. Isha Shravani is an angel who ‘lives in a cake‘ and you can bet she is made of strawberry and cream.

Dimple Kapadia, as pug faced Rishi Kapoor says is ‘a crocodile in a chiffon saree‘. She sinks her teeth in her role of a scheming filmy mother, like she would totter around town with her Birkin bag, without a conscience for the less fortunate.

Juhi Chawla, as Rishi Kapoor‘s hare brained half, is side-splitting, at her kurkure best. Hrithik makes fun on his own terpsichorean skills. Rishi Kapoor is brilliant as a moneyed old hand churning the same sh*t over and over to keep the Bollywood spirit ‘alive‘.



Except for a stray Shankar-Ehsan-Loy song, everything in the film is perfect. Cinematography, art direction, costumes (trendsetting) and casting. The dialogues are crisp, and crackling with humour which is at once clever and acerbic.

‘Luck By Chance‘ is my choice for the year‘s best film. The announcement in a year when ‘3 Idiots‘, ‘My Name Is Khan‘, ‘Kaminey‘, ‘Delhi 6‘, ‘Love Aaj Kal‘ are due. Too early? Don‘t be too sure. LBC cannot be fully comprehended in one show. But, that‘s the Critique Bitch speaking.

Will it do well outside the metros? Unlikely. Business will be average, yet why is this film a new wave classic? Because it precedes the new wave which is yet to catch on, and once that happens, in retrospect, we‘ll run to LBC which started it all. A film that wishes to deconstruct how a film is not necessarily aiming to be cult.

Missed

well the bitch certainly seemed to have missed the Miu miu/ YSL dress that Nikki Walia is wearing at the party where they meet Kareena, a complete fashion statement at its best... Isha surely springs back to films now after her much hated acrobatic go-go dance called something out of the jungle book... Also the amazing bags... LV and Burberry all the way... don‘t forget the unforgettable Pool scene wher FA bares it all... nice treat to that!! Three cheers to the Akhtars for putting up this amazing show.. and for those who thought the movie was about too many star casts... u can go to Timbuktoo for all that "we" care... | Blahnik

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Seedha Seedha bol

Abey bitch. Tere purey review padley humney. Fir bhi nahi pata chala picture achi hai ya buri. Ka re bitch, achey se kaam kur. Review mein ye to likh dey, hit ya flop. | Karan

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Money is honey, my little sonny, a rich man’s joke is always funny

How much money did you get, from the Akhtars, to write this review??? | Baxcee

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oh boy

umm...karan if u read the last three paragraphs u would know that she loved the movie...lol...maybe u should read next time! | rhythm

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