Young actor Vikram Jaisingh (Farhan Akhtar) arrives in Mumbai to make it as a Bollywood film star with the help of Abhimanyu (Arjun Mathur), an actor friend from his hometown, and their mutual friend Sameer, who works in a studio props department. Vikram befriends Abhi's neighbor, young actress Sona Mishra (Konkona Sen Sharma), with whom he eventually becomes romantically involved. Sona, the mistress of small-time producer Satish Chowdhury (Alyy Khan), who for three years has promised her a leading role in his dream project, meanwhile works in regional films and bit parts. When star Zaffar Khan (Hrithik Roshan) walks out on a movie being made by old-school producer Romy Rolly (Rishi Kapoor) as a star vehicle for Nikki Walia (Isha Sharvani), the newcomer daughter of famous older actress Neena Walia (Dimple Kapadia), a search for an unknown to replace Zaffar lands Vikram the role. As Vikram becomes increasingly crafty and manipulative, his on-set affair with Nikki becomes leaked to the tabloid press, ending his and Sona's already all-but-over relationship. Bollywood stars including Aamir Khan Shahrukh Khan, Rani Mukherjee, Abhishek Bachchan, and John Abraham make cameo appearances as themselves.
