Kapadia was cast in Zoya Akhtar's first directorial venture "Luck by Chance" (2009), a satirical take on the Hindi film industry. She played Neena Walia, an erstwhile superstar—referred to in the film as "a crocodile in a chiffon saree"—who struggles to launch her young daughter into the movie business. Kapadia was approached for the part because it required an actor who had been a mainstream female lead in the past. Akhtar noted Kapadia's edgy portrayal of the character's fickle nature, saying Kapadia is "all warm, soft sunshine and then there's a flip and she's hard, cold, steely". "Luck By Chance" opened to a warm critical response, though its financial income was modest. Critics were appreciative of Kapadia's performance, which earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination at Filmfare. Deepa Karmalkar from "Screen" characterised her role as "gloriously bitchy" while Avijit Ghosh of "The Times of India" believed Kapadia had delivered "one of her most nuanced performances" in a character he found to be "a rare kind of Hindi film mother" who is "hawk-eyed, tough as nails but vainglorious, and in a strange way, vulnerable as well".