- Mindy Kaling
-
Mindy Kaling 
Mindy Kaling, 2008Born Vera Mindy Chokalingam
June 24, 1979
Cambridge, Massachusetts, United StatesOccupation Actress, comedian, writer, producer Years active 2004–present Vera Mindy Chokalingam (born June 24, 1979), better known as Mindy Kaling, is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer who plays Kelly Kapoor on the NBC sitcom The Office. Kaling is also a co-executive producer and writer of several of the show's episodes.
Contents
Early life
Kaling was born Vera Chokalingam[1][2] in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Tamil parents from India.[3] Her father, Avu, is an architect and her mother, Swati, is an obstetrician/gynecologist.[4] [5]
She explains that she has been known as Mindy ever since her mother was pregnant with her when her parents were living in Nigeria. They were already planning to move to the U.S. and wanted a "cute American name" for their daughter, and liked the name Mindy from the TV show Mork & Mindy. The name Vera is the name of the "incarnation of a Hindu goddess." [6]
She graduated from Buckingham Browne & Nichols, a private school in Cambridge in 1997. The following year, she entered Dartmouth College, where she was a member of the improvisational comedy troupe "The Dog Day Players" and the a cappella group "The Rockapellas", the creator of the comic strip "Badly Drawn Girl" in The Dartmouth (the college's daily newspaper), as well as writing for the Dartmouth Jack-O-Lantern (the college's humor magazine). She graduated in 2001.[7] In 2003, she portrayed Ben Affleck in a play titled "Matt & Ben", which she also co-wrote with Brenda Withers. The play was named one of Time magazine's "Top Ten Theatrical Events of The Year".
Career
Kaling's past TV appearances include a 2005 episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, playing Richard Lewis's assistant. [8] Kaling is also featured on the CD Comedy Death-Ray and wrote for one episode of Saturday Night Live in April 2006.[citation needed]
Kaling's first film role was in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, which starred Steve Carell. She also made an appearance in the film Unaccompanied Minors as a waitress. In 2007, she held a small part in License to Wed starring fellow The Office actors John Krasinski, Angela Kinsey and Brian Baumgartner. Recently, Kaling was in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian as a Smithsonian Museum of Air and Space tour guide. She also voiced the character of "Tourist Mom" in the animated comedy Despicable Me. In 2011, she played the role of Shira, a doctor who is a flatmate and colleague of the main character Emma (played by Natalie Portman) in No Strings Attached.
Prior to acting, one of her "worst job" experiences was as a production assistant on the Crossing Over With John Edward psychic show.[6]
Her Biography, Is everyone hanging out without me (and other concerns) was released in November 2011. The book is a collection of essays about her early life and career breakthrough intertwined with short observational essays about her friends, family and relationships.
The Office
Kaling first joined The Office as a writer when she was 24, as the only woman on a staff of eight,[9] and then took on the role of character Kelly Kapoor. She has written at least 22 episodes,[9] including "Niagara", for which she was co-nominated for an Emmy with Greg Daniels. Kaling also wrote and directed the webisodes "Subtle Sexuality" in 2009. In a 2007 interview with The A.V. Club, Kaling stated that the Kelly character is "an exaggerated version of what I think the upper-level writers believe my personality is."[10] After the "Diwali" episode, Kaling appeared with Daniels on NPR's Fresh Air.[11]
Most recently, Kaling directed The Office webisodes titled The 3rd Floor.[citation needed] She also directed the season 6 episode titled "Body Language", which marked her television directorial debut.
Kaling's contract was set to expire at the end of Season 7. On September 15, 2011, she signed a new contract to stay with the show for Season 8 and was promoted to full Executive Producer status.[12] Her current NBC contract includes a development deal for a new show for which she will both write and act.[9]
Kaling used to maintain a blog called “Things I’ve Bought That I Love,", which reemerged on her website on September 29, 2011.[13] She is the author of the comic memoir Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns),[9] which she plugged on the 31 October 2011 episode of The Daily Show.[14]
Episodes written
- "Hot Girl" (April 26, 2005) - Season 1
- "The Dundies" (September 20, 2005) - Season 2
- "The Injury" (January 12, 2006) - Season 2
- "Take Your Daughter to Work Day" (March 16, 2006) - Season 2
- "Diwali" (November 2, 2006) - Season 3
- "Ben Franklin" (February 1, 2007) - Season 3
- "Branch Wars" (November 1, 2007) - Season 4
- "Night Out" (April 24, 2008) - Season 4
- "Frame Toby" (November 20, 2008) - Season 5
- "Lecture Circuit: Part 1" (February 5, 2009) - Season 5
- "Lecture Circuit: Part 2" (February 12, 2009) - Season 5
- "Golden Ticket" (March 12, 2009) - Season 5
- "Niagara" co-written with Greg Daniels (October 8, 2009) - Season 6
- "Secret Santa" (December 10, 2009) - Season 6
- "The Manager and the Salesman" (February 11, 2010) - Season 6
- "Secretary's Day" (April 22, 2010) - Season 6
- "The Sting" (October 21, 2010) - Season 7
- "Classy Christmas" (December 9, 2010) - Season 7
- "Michael's Last Dundies" (April 21, 2011) - Season 7
Episodes Directed
- "Body Language" (April 29, 2010) - Season 6
- "Michael's Last Dundies" (April 21, 2011) - Season 7
Awards and nominations
Year Group Award Won Film/Television series 2005 Writers Guild of America Awards New Series No The Office Comedy Series No 2006 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series[15] Yes Writers Guild of America Awards Comedy Series Yes Emmy Awards Outstanding Comedy Series Yes 2007 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series[16] Yes Emmy Awards Outstanding Comedy Series No Writers Guild of America Awards Episodic Comedy - for episode Local Ad No Comedy Series No 2008 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series No Emmy Awards Outstanding Comedy Series No Writers Guild of America Awards Comedy Series No 2009 Prism Awards Performance in a Comedy Series No References
- ^ Online list of 2001 Dartmouth grads, TheDartmouth.com
- ^ Kofke-Egger, Heather. March 5, 1999. Chokalingham '01: comedy is a way of life, TheDartmouth.com
- ^ Happy Diwali From 'The Office':Mindy Kaling takes center stage in episode about Hindu festival Zap2it, retrieved February 5, 2008
- ^ "MIndy Kaling". NNDB/Soylent Communications. http://www.nndb.com/people/461/000204846/. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
- ^ Kaling, Mindy. "MInsy Kaling: "Flick Chicks": The New Yorker". Conde Nast Digital. http://www.newyorker.com/humor/2011/10/03/111003sh_shouts_kaling?currentPage=all. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
- ^ a b Soroff, Jonathan. "the office_us:Mindy Kaling interview in Improper Bostonian". Interview. Live Journal, Inc.. http://theoffice-us.livejournal.com/1322768.html. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ^ Swiss, Zach. May 23, 2006. Kaling '01 embarks on acting, writing career for 'The Office', TheDartmouth.com
- ^ "Curb Your Enthusiasm" Lewis Needs a Kidney (2005)". IMDb.com. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0551390/combined. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
- ^ a b c d Sittenfeld, Curtis (25 September 2011). "A Long Day at ‘The Office’ With Mindy Kaling". The New York Times Sunday Magazine. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/25/magazine/a-long-day-at-the-office-with-mindy-kaling.html?hp. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ^ The A.V. Club, retrieved February 5, 2008
- ^ Gross, Terry (November 2, 2006). "Writing 'The Office'". Fresh Air. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6422523. Retrieved December 1, 2008.
- ^ Ausiello, Michael. "Scoop: Mindy Kaling Gets Major Office Promotion — But There's a Twist!". Blog. TVLine Media, LLC. http://www.tvline.com/2011/09/mindy-kaling-office-contract-promotion-exec-producer/. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ^ Blog at her website
- ^ "Mindy Kaling". The Daily Show. Comedy Central. October 31, 2011. Event occurs at 14:36.
- ^ Screen Actors Guild Honors Outstanding Film and Television Performances..., a January 2007 press release from the SAG Awards website
- ^ 'Sopranos,' 'The Office' Win SAG Ensemble Awards, a January 2008 TVWeek article
External links
Categories:- 1979 births
- Actors from Massachusetts
- American comedy writers
- American film actors
- American people of Indian descent
- American people of Tamil descent
- American actors of Asian descent
- American stand-up comedians
- American television actors
- American television directors
- American television producers
- American television writers
- Dartmouth College alumni
- Female television directors
- Living people
- People from Cambridge, Massachusetts
- The Office (U.S. TV series)
- Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Screen Actors Guild Award winners
- Writers Guild of America Award winners
- Women comedians
- Women television writers
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
