For a first time film maker, Zoya Akhtar has had a dream run even though she protests that Luck By Chance took seven painstaking years to make. First week revenues crossed Rs 7.75 crores and the second week has done even better. “Actually, I’m too exhausted to celebrate,” says Zoya, who was in Delhi over the weekend with brother Farhan, actor-producer for Luck By Chance.

Zoya has an insider’s perspective on the Indian film industry and her take on Bollywood in this movie is being hailed as refreshingly original. Despite the slightly murky shades in her protagonists. “People have egos and this world is highly competitive,” she says. Farhan, meanwhile, can’t help gushing about his sister’s directorial debut. “I faced rejection while making Dil Chahta Hai but Zoya had a sense of self-belief through out,” he smiles proudly. Farhan also felt real life similarities with his character because of the sacrifices he made in his career. “My biggest regret is not having spent enough time with my daughters, Shakya and Akira. When I was shooting in Ladakh, I did not see them for five months at a stretch,” he says.