AN AMBITIOUS teenager with dreams of a movie career will be taking his first steps to stardom when he joins the Bollywood music scene later this month.

Wilmslow High School student, Umar Kamani, 18, from Weston Road, Wilmslow, will be performing in two Indian music videos in Mumbai after being recruited by music company Universal.

Umar, who says he has been acting since the age of seven, hopes the project will pave the way for a glittering showbiz career.

He said: "I met a music producer called Sumit Dutt a few months ago at the International Indian Film Academy awards in Dubai where I was visiting my grandfather.

"Sumit asked if I wanted to take part in the videos to be employed as an actor. In India, they tend to employ an actor to mime the words while the song is dubbed over the top - so it won't actually be me that people hear."

For the past four years, Umar has been training at the Stagecoach Theatre School in Handforth.

He was then spotted by Laine Management which found him walk-on roles in Coronation Street, Brookside, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks. He is also in negotiation with MTV to present a music video for them. But despite his acting successes, Umar says he is determined to continue with his A-levels in theatre, media studies and business.

He added: "I hope this will give me a chance to get a foothold in the industry.

"In India the acting and music business is nowhere near as developed as it is in the UK and America, but once I've gained experience there my aim is to then come here to further my acting career and possibly move into the film industry. At the moment it is a real juggling act with my studies and career, but I'm determined to take my A-levels next year."