Indian Idol 2

Monali got voted out last night! Not that I was a great fan of hers, but she was better than a lot of the current crop. Her voice shook a bit, but poor girl...how do you expect her to sing in pukka sur, emote, dance and be camera friendly at the same time??? Not forgetting at least half a dozen dancers prancing around her causing a major distraction!!Still she was leagues better than Antara, who btw completely massacared my most favorite RD song...I'd never forgive her for that!!

Ravi seems to be a jinxed name for Indian Idol. Last season thanks to Ravinder Ravi quite a few deserving singers didn't get a chance and this year looks like Mr Tripathi is pulling yet another Ravinder Ravi!!!

And what about Panna?He's cute to look at, dances well, but performance is getting repetitive and singing stays average. Anuj, the great come-back miracle completely squandered his golden opportunity! But surprise surprise, he gets voted in and who goes to bottom 3? Of all people on earth...Karunya!!!

Amey and Karunya by far are the strongest contenders for the title if one looks at raw talent only and not at cuteness factor or underpriviledged background or make-over magic or any other emotional drama!! These two sing with all their heart and soul and does justice to any song they pick.

Antara...what do I say about her?!I still remember when she asked Farah Khan about X-factor and how she can't help her bhadda surat! A trip to the beauty parlor did wonders to her! But where is the spark that she showed in the preliminary rounds??? Does she really come from Maslandpur, the so called chhoti si gaon? Her English diction is perfect, her body language is confident, it totally belies her claim of being a village belle! Remember the fashion victim Ritu Pathak...she was the real thing...one look at her and you know her background!!

Last but not the least, Meenal...hmmm...she's pretty, sings reasonably well, but her voice lacks the maturity required to carry off the songs she's picking. Who knows what the coming weeks will bring for her!!

The official Indian Idol site is flooded with messages from Pakistan, UK, USA, Canada, Bangladesh, Nepal, UAE and god knows where. Glad to know people out there are colsely following this mega talent hunt. Wonder why they don't open up internet voting like Sa Re Ga Ma Pa?! They have internet poll going on with security code against multiple voting...why not vote for the contestants the same way?