Karthikeyan wants to help young Indians

"As a youngster it was always very hard to find sponsorship in India," the Williams test driver said on Thursday before flying to Malaysia, the closest race to his homeland, for Sunday's second round of the season.

"If I could help some drivers get into the Indian scene without them being hassled to find the sponsorship then I think it would be a good step.

"Also I would be giving back something to the sport," Karthikeyan told Reuters.

"We are talking with our sponsors ... so hopefully some kind of package can be put for the youngsters in this line and I would be happy to support this programme."

He said a long-term plan was for an academy for promising Indian drivers.

"The academy thing will be later on. The first step would be to offer a complete drive to four young drivers from India below the age of 21 in the highest category of the Indian racing championship," he said.

"That's the plan at the moment but I've been so busy recently that I have to go back and see how to put this into practice."

The Chennai driver made his debut last season with Jordan (now Midland) and became the first Indian to score Formula One points when he finished fourth in the six-car U.S. Grand Prix.

Although only the second test driver at Williams, with Austrian Alexander Wurz taking the reserve slot and driving in Friday practice at the races, Karthikeyan hoped to maintain a sufficient profile to make a comeback in 2007.

At the Bahrain season-opener last weekend he took part in a pro-celebrity race with Bollywood actor Salman Khan but they failed to finish.

"I was pretty frustrated when everyone went on to the circuit and you are in the pits, listening to what they are saying on the radio," he said of his new life as a spectator.

"But that is life and I have chosen this role, to be a test driver with a very good team. Hopefully the experience will make me a better driver for 2007."

Karthikeyan will test the new V8-powered FW28 car for the first time next week, returning to Europe to test new parts before the Australian Grand Prix on April 2.

"I'm really looking forward to it, really excited and I hope I can shine in the test," he said.