'The Archies' director Zoya Akhtar on nepotism in Bollywood: 'My father came to the industry with nothing'

Zoya Akhtar is gearing up for her next film The Archies that will stream on December 7 on Netflix. The stellar cast of the film shows Agastya Nanda as Archie Andrews, Khushi Kapoor as Betty Cooper, Suhana Khan as Veronica Lodge, Vedang Raina as Reggie Mantle, Mihir Ahuja as Jughead Jones, Dot as Ethel Muggs, and Yuvraj Menda as Dilton Doiley. Agastya is Amitabh Bachchan’s grandson, Suhana is Shah Rukh Khan’s daughter, and Khushi is Boney Kapoor and the late Sridevi’s daughter. In an interview with The Indian Express, Akhtar addressed the debate around nepotism in the film industry and said, “There is definitely a conversation of have and have nots, there is definitely a conversation of people with privilege and those without.” She added, “May be the film industry has become a symbol of it to some level, but I think what people need to ask for is what they really want. Better school, better education? By denying someone a career of their choice, that’s not going to make anything better for you. So I understand that to the root of it there is something but just this conversation is not taking it anywhere. It is not changing anything.” Talking about her father, the veteran writer and lyricist Javed Akhtar, she stated, “When my parents came to the film industry, my father came with nothing. He made his life here from nothing. I have inherited his love for writing and films and his contacts. Now what I should I do? Not continue to do what I want or not follow what I have learnt through osmosis. I love the movies and why will I not follow that?”