Referrals - nepotism in CA firms

I was so happy when I cleared my CA intermediate exam on my second attempt. It felt like my hard work finally paid off. I was super excited to start my articleship journey, but not being able to secure an articleship in decent firm (top 20) has been huge blow to my confidence.

What’s been even more frustrating is that I haven’t been able to get interviewed, largely due to not having any referrals, it feels like I am stuck in a loop, not even getting chance to prove my worth.

Now i don’t know what to do next, my city only has small CA firms and not receiving any response from good firm in other cities.

I would appreciate any advice from those who have been in similar situations. What to do next? Should I physically go to these companies office ti apply for articleship?