There are just eight days to go for the Grand Finale and it was time for the Top 3 to go to their home towns and campaign for votes. Torsha Sarkar, Sourabhee Debbarma and Kapil Thappa sat together and decided where they would go, marking it on a map—Torsha was going to Kolkata and Kulti, Kapil to New Delhi and Dehradun, and Sourabhee to Guwahati and Agartala.

Kapil meets his Army ‘brothers’

When Kapil reached New Delhi he not only got a great welcome at the airport, but he was also greeted by the Army a little later on. He had got news that a battalion was on duty at the India Gate and went to meet them. It was a pandemonium of shouted praise, screaming excitement (from female fans) and the omnipresent clicks of the camera, interspersed with hugs and claps.

From there he proceeded to the Monastery market, a Nepali market, where his fans were thrilled to see him. Kapil was shaking so many hands that he did not get an opportunity to shop!

Torsha meets her idol

Torsha’s parents were at the airport to greet her and then she proceeded in a carriage, much like a princess, to meet her fans. Her journey had several stops on the way—to sign autographs, meets fans, click pictures and campaign for votes. But before she did anything, Torsha went to a mithai shop and made herself some jalebis. “You don’t get jalebis like this anywhere else in India,” said the Bengali girl.

Later on in the day, she got to meet the ‘King of Kolkata’ in his castle. Torsha met up with her idol Sourav Ganguly at his restaurant, Sourav’s. A visibly-thrilled Torsha chatted with the cricket star and his family and he vowed to support her. Which was good news because the only thing she wants to do is to be the “No. 1” like him.

Sourabhee meets an Indian Idol

Sourabhee had a surprise waiting for her at the Guwahati airport—Indian Idol Prashant Tamang had joined her parents to welcome her and to take her around campaigning. After a riotous welcome, they went to meet Bhupen Hazarika, the singer-composer-lyricist-director. Not only did he give Sourabhee his blessings, but he also sang for her his popular song Dil hoon hoon kare.

Then Sourabhee and Prashant went to the Kamakhya Temple to ask for blessings. Every little helps, after all.

Kapil greeted with nagadas

For an instant Kapil thought he was returning home, to Dehradun, as a non-entity—like he used to before he joined Indian Idol. But when the train reached its station, it was chaos—of nagadas playing, people shouting, garlands, topis and cheers. The Singing Soldier was escorted home in a rally surrounded by dozens and dozens of motorcycles.

Kapil got a very emotional welcome when he got home—with an aarti and weeping relatives. His visibly-proud father said they were all glad he was home, even for a little while, and that they were proud of what he had become.

Then Kapil wanted to do something a little different—he wanted to go pay his respects to the family of the late NSG commando constable Gajendra Singh, who became a martyr during the Mumbai terror attacks. His mother was in tears, but she was glad to see Kapil. She said it felt as if her son had come back to her alive. Kapil stayed with her for a long time, consoling her and assuring her he would keep coming back to check on her. That was a very touching moment.

Torsha goes back to school

A much-garlanded Torsha made her way home on top of a van, a procession that was cheered every step of the way home by her fans. Once home, she was greeted by her parents and relatives. She even sang a Bengali song with her mother, her guru.

Then she went to her school, where she met with her teachers and her juniors. She not only signed autographs, but she also entertained they with a variety of songs including Laila of Laila.

Later on in the evening, she thrilled the people of Kulti with a rocking performance. We are sure that after such a hands-on campaigning, Torsha will receive a deluge of votes.

Sourabhee and her ‘kingly’ campaign

All of Agartala had turned out on to the streets to welcome their daughter home. Sourabhee caused a huge traffic jam as she made her way home—her fans just could not seem to get enough of her. So she decided to perform for them in the evening.

The stadium was packed, but that certainly did not daunt Sourabhee. She enthralled her fans with popular numbers like Sajanaji vaari vaari and Golmaal. She also whipped them into a frenzy with songs in her mother tongue. But the highlight of the evening was when the King of Tripura, Pradyut Kishore, took the stage to campaign for his favourite Indian Idol contestant. Now that was certainly a moment she will never forget in her life.

The homecomings are done and the Top 3 will be back in Mumbai soon, rehearsing for their pitched battle on March 1. Don’t forget to tune in and root for your favourite at 8 p.m. only on Sony TV.