As an Indian-American performer, Mindy Kaling has weathered a lot during her time in Hollywood. Many other females in the industry label her as a pioneer, but she admits it hasn’t always been easy on her rise to the top.
In an interview with NPR, Kaling shared that sexism in the entertainment industry is still alive and well, especially during her time on The Office.
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She revealed, “Years from now, when I have time to sit and reflect on the different situations that I face every day, I’ll be able to speak more succinctly about the challenges as a woman. Yeah, there’s obviously instances where I perceive sexism in my job… I think that the sort of sexism that I see has been one that’s a little bit like a gentler form of sexism, but still a little bit debilitating, which is that when, as a producer and a writer, whether it was at The Office or [at The Mindy Project], if I make a decision, it’ll still seem like it’s up for debate.”
The Office appeared to be a little more difficult for her than her current Fox show, The Mindy Project.
She explained, “I notice [the debate] a little bit at The Office, with, like, an actor: If I decided there’d be a certain way in the script, it would still seem open-ended, whereas… if I was a man I would not have seen that. [At The Mindy Project,] I feel that… less and less as I’ve sort of matured into the role more. The one thing I sort of, because of that, have felt [is] that when I made a decision I sort of would have to leave the room so that it was final and there was like no discussion would come after that.”
Kaling even conceded that a television critic can get under her skin from time to time. She wants to hear feedback, but the actress also has multiple jobs to do — from writing to producing to editing.
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She summed up, “For this white critic to say, ‘I don’t understand why she doesn’t do that,’ — and you’re like, ‘It’s because I’m running a show on a major network and I want the show to continue’ — and to sort of guilt me… I’m an A student. I’m addicted to feedback, and I want to please people. That’s sort of how I’ve gotten to where I am. And I think that it’s insidious to be spending more of your time reflecting and talking about panels, and talking more and more in smart ways about your otherness, rather than doing the hard work of your job.”
Preach, Mindy Kaling, preach!
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