Will Smith in Idol II today(ARTICLE)

Will Smith in Indian Idol II, today

Televisionpoint.com Team
Today, India will have another reason to check out Indian Idol II, as the Hollywood movie star and Grammy winning rapper, Will Smith, will make a special appearance for the mega finals of the show. This is the first time a Hollywood star will appear in an Indian television show, and not just any star, but one who began his career in music and continues to put out albums every few years despite a busy film career.

"Will Smith has heard a lot about the Indian entertainment industry and when Sony invited him to launch a new movie channel, he expressed his interest in experiencing Indian entertainment firsthand. So, we thought this would be a perfect way to give him that experience. He will be interacting one-on-one with the participants of the show. All the six participants, Meenal Jain, Antara Mitra, Sandeep Acharya, Amey Date, N. Karunya and Anuj Sharma will have the chance to share their experiences with him," says Ambica Maitra, who manages Indian Idol II for Sony TV.

For his part, contestant Karunya, one of the three finalists, is beside himself with joy. Asked how he feels about meeting 'The Fresh Prince' up close, and he says, "Excited! Well, we all are waiting to interact with him. I have always been a great fan of his. He's got great style, man. He adds freshness to everything he does and manages to maintain his happy-go-lucky, 'cool dude' air despite his hectic schedule. I wonder if he will share tips on achieving this?"

The star of such hits as Men in Black, Enemy of the State and Ali, will not judge the participants' per formance as is done in the American version of the show, but instead encour age the participants. Having enjoyed a success ful, nearly 20-year hip hop career, Smith will also advise the contestants, giv ing them tips on performance, voice modulation and rhythm.