Transcript of Mindy Kaling

Oh, fühlt sich das nach Sommer an!

Die neue Sommerwäsche von CHIWO begeistert mit leuchtenden Farben und fröhlichen Prints.

Feine Spitze, leichte Mikrofaser und sommerliche Schnitte sorgen für pures Wohlgefühl, selbst an heißen Tagen.

Entdecke jetzt die neue Wäschekollektion von CHIWO und finde deine Lieblingsstücke für den Sommer.

Skip the snow by Jibo.

Hello everyone, and welcome to another episode of Good Hang. We have a great one today. We are talking to Mindy Kaling. Mindy, mogul, so good at so many things, and we get into it today. We talk about a lot of fun stuff. We talk about a cappella groups. We talk about whether or not we think we can deliver a baby. We talk about the fact that she has written more episodes of The Office than any other writer. And we get into her new show, Not Suitable for Work, which is on now on Hulu. So, lots of great stuff to talk about. And like always, we talk to someone who knows our guest and has a question for our guest. And speaking of Not Suitable for Work, we have one of the stars from that show, Avantika, joining us. Avantika, who you may know from the movie musical of Mean Girls, a talented young woman, who is here to, well, to grace our presence, really. Avantika? Is my audio working?

Woo-hoo-hoo!

This episode is brought to you by Hilton. Did you hear Paris Hilton has like a billion Hilton Honors points? Well, she calls them Paris Points, and Hilton is helping her give them all away this summer. Use them for that wedding or bléasure, that's business and pleasure, or maybe book a stay just for sleep. As Paris would say, That's sliving. Just make sure you're a Hilton Honors member and follow Paris and Hilton on the socials to see how Paris Points can be your points. When you want points that actually make your summer slay, it matters where you stay. What do you say?

I am the one who wants a really good hey.

Hi, it's so nice to see you again.

I know, it's so good to see you.

Congratulations on all the good stuff happening for you. And no surprise, where are we talking to you from? Where are you from?

I'm on set right now, which is why my makeup looks a little scary.

Are you shooting Not Suitable for Work right now? Is that the set that you're on?

Can you imagine? I'm soft launching season 2. No, this is not the set I'm on. I'm on an undisclosed set.

Oh, exciting.

I'm not at liberty to talk about.

You are busy, busy, busy. You know, we first met on the set of Moxie.

On the set of Moxie.

Yeah.

Yeah. How did we meet? Do you remember?

I don't remember like the first initial meeting. I just have a really vivid memory of you, of like walking out of the school, like the classroom and seeing you and my dad like holding hands and jumping up and down together because you figured out you guys had the same birthday because he loves talking. What the hell happened? Hey, Mom. You both had your IDs out. I was like, cool, okay. Great. Glad everyone's getting along. Oh my God.

Oh my God, he's a September 16th girly.

Yes, he is.

Sadly, I've learned it's a very common— September birthdays are very common, I guess. Yeah, I guess people really get down.

I know, what does that say about us?

They get down in the holidays, I guess.

I guess so, we get bored. We get bored and we're cold.

Well, I remember I directed a film for Netflix called Moxie, and it was filled with an incredible cast. And I remember you came and joined us for a too brief scene, but a really fun day. And that's really cute that your dad and I bonded. I was reading up on you, Avantika, and you're so impressive in the stuff that you've done. And I didn't know that you did a lot of Bollywood when you were younger.

Yeah, it's how I started out. I think at the time I was 10, and Indian parents like to make safe bets, and it was not a safe bet at the time to be like, let's haul ass to LA and do this for the rest of your life. But India was a more prospective place if I wanted to be in the film industry. And so we moved there for like 4 years.

Oh wow, they— you moved there for your career?

Yeah, yeah. My mom really, like, my mom left her job the day that I was born. She was like, I want to spend all my time with my daughter. And she made a lot of sacrifices for me to be in this industry. So I'm you know, very grateful that now she gets to like watch a TV show. And I like, I'm, I, I hope she enjoys. And, um, yeah, she really is the reason that I'm here. Not to get all emo on everyone. Um, yeah. Um, but at 7 in the morning for you.

No, no, no. I'm ready to cry anytime. Anytime. Okay. So let's talk about your boss. So we're, we're, I'm, okay. So I'm interviewing Mindy Kaling today, whom I've known for a really long time. And I'm really excited to talk to her because, you know, we have a lot of similar, experiences and paths. And one of the things that I really wanna talk to her about is like, what kind of boss is she?

So the first time I ever met Mindy was in a parking lot that she took me to in LA because I had DM'd her when I was 17 being like, "I love you, I love you so much." And she was like, "Okay." She was like, "Yeah." Like, she was like, "Let me have my assistant schedule lunch." And I was like, "Oh my God." It's like, this is the most exciting thing happening right now. And she took me to a French restaurant in a strip mall.

In LA.

And the seating is literally in a parking lot. And my dad was parked 300 feet away. I love mentioning my dad. My dad's making a reappearance in every story. He's just always proximate. And he's actually in the room right now. Can you imagine? But she took me to this French restaurant and was like, we need to try escargot if you haven't tried it already. So my first one-on-one experience with Mindy was eating snails and her being this very— she was like, tell me about your career. She was like, what do you want? In life. And I think the one thing that always stood out to me about her, and is one of everyone's favorite qualities about her, but having worked on this set, is that she's such a curious person. Like, she— Mindy asks so many questions. She's just, like, down to gossip. She's down to gab. Like, she knows about my love life. She knows about all of our love lives. Um, like, Mindy's just a really fun person to be around. I really wish this time around that she, like— we don't— because we're always scared of when we're gonna lose Mindy, because, like, Mindy's first priority are her kids and, like, her outside.

And so this season, we're hoping that we're going to get our claws in her. And if we get renewed for a next season, she won't let us go. But she's the best. I think whether Mindy knows it or can really comprehend it or not, she's a present figure in so many people's minds as sort of— A lot of people view Mindy as a friend and a role model or an idol, whether it be Kelly Kapoor or any of the characters she's she's created.

Yeah.

And as a young Indian woman watching her, what did it mean to see her representing her life on screen? What was that like as a young person?

I loved Never Have I Ever. I mean, when Never Have I Ever came out in trades that it was getting made, I was like, "This is the most insane thing I've ever seen in my life." I was in that— So I auditioned for Never Have I Ever, and I was very young when I went out for it. But I remember being in the waiting room looking at the sign-in sheet, for and being like, who are all the girls? Like, I want to be friends with all of them. And so I remember telling my mom, so can you please memorize the latter half and I'll memorize the pop pop and then we can go and like DM their moms on Facebook because I really want to be friends with people in the industry.

And we all know how well DMs work for you. Well, literally, it always works.

And Mai Trieu was perfect for that role. And she did like so, so incredible. But all that to say, like, she has a very an odd, incredible way of bringing together community and bringing together people, both off camera, but also behind the scenes as well. And I think watching her on screen meant the same thing as representation means to more anybody, which is that, like, "Oh, people like me exist, and people like me are deserving of being put on a big platform." Very cool.

Okay, so we have— We always do this thing where we ask our guests a question from somebody who knows them, respects them, works with them, loves and adores them. So what question do you have you have for Mindy today?

I'd like to know, for someone who's accomplished so much, like, what her personal, like, egot is. Like, what her 4 accomplishments that she wants to achieve in her life, like, spanning 4 different categories. That's such a big question. I love it. It's a big question. You'll get—

so wait, so the question is what, like, which is like, you've done so much, what more do you want to do?

It's sort of like, like, if I don't know, like a person got, like, have 4 kids, get a PhD, spend 2 years abroad, like, you know, donating money, and like the 4th one is like, I want to skydive. Like, it would like 4 things that you want to accomplish across like all sort of a breadth of categories. Yeah, I guess that is like, I'm sort of just like, she's just, she's just done so much that I'm like, what more do you want?

That, I mean, it's, it's an I bet she'll have an answer. Um, also there is a part of me that's like, or just rest. Rest now, darling.

Right, right, right.

Personally, God, get put in a cryo chamber.

Yes.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Okay. I love that. And, um, please tell your dad, um, that I can't wait to, you know, psychically spend my birthday with him again. And, um, it's so lovely to see you and I know Mindy will be really happy that we talked. Congratulations on your new show, Not Suitable for Work on Hulu. And thank you so much for talking to us and and for all the great things ahead for you. And such a pleasure to see you again.

So good to see you, Jill.

You too. Thanks so much for your time. Bye, honey.

Bye.

Bye.

Woo-hoo-hoo!

This episode is brought to you by Allstate. Checking Allstate first could save you hundreds on car insurance. Not checking your pockets before putting clothes in the washer?

Oof.

Enjoy your freshly cleaned and completely destroyed earbuds. Yeah, checking first is a good plan. So check Allstate first for an auto quote. It could save you hundreds. You're in good hands with Allstate. Potential savings vary, subject to terms, conditions, and availability. Allstate North American Insurance Company and Affiliates, Northbrook, Illinois.

Woo-hoo-hoo!

Mindy Kaling is here, everybody. Took the red-eye, which is— I just gotta say, that's brutal.

Isn't it funny how in my 20s, it was the only way I would do things? I'd shoot The Office, and then Friday night, I was like, "Take the red-eye, get into—" I'd just be going back to Boston to see my parents. And my dad would pick me up at Logan. At 6 o'clock we'd go to McDonald's and I'd just sleep for 4 hours. Yes.

And now— I was just talking to our friend Rashida Jones about this. It's the lack of recovery. It's like we can power through anything now, you know, like you just suck it up and power through, but it's— there's no day to sleep after.

There's no day to sleep. No. So I just did a line of coke. Yeah. And we're flying. Woo! And that's how I'm doing great.

We're gonna brag about our careers and then we're gonna Yeah, we're gonna crash out in like 45 minutes. But thank you for coming.

Thank you for being here. I'm so excited to be here. I know, remember when we used to do David Letterman and the producers would be like, "Do not compliment him. He doesn't know what to do with it." That's right. And you were like, "Oh, so it's like an insult to compliment a host." And then now I feel— I felt like for other shows too, I was like, "Don't do that." And then it feeds into the whole thing of like, it's not cool to compliment It was very formative when that producer was like, "Don't compliment him." It's so true. You're right. It's a hostile act. And yet, I love compliments as a performer. And if someone came onto my show and was like, "I love the show," I feel like— I love to give.

I love to get. I mean, literally, what are we doing? I mean, like, what are we gonna be, like, mean to each other? Like, the world is on fire.

Like, who— I love recognition. I love praise. So I just wanna say that I love the show. Thank you. I watch it with my nanny on Little Person YouTube. Perfect. At night after the children are down. And it's like, it's such an intimate thing to watch in the dark, you talking to Ike Barinholtz. Our buddy. Kathryn Hahn. Oh, our buddy. And then have our little ads on YouTube.

You know, when I was getting ready for today, first of all, congrats on being a mogul, straight-up mogul. Thank you. Mogul. You don't have to explain. You take it in. You are a mogul, Mindy. Congratulations.

Listen, listen, this is— I know I'm interrupting you now. No, please. Are you a mogul if you haven't invested in a restaurant or sports team?

That's a great question.

Just because I want to accept. We know I love—

We need to buy some kind of sports team. I'd like Ashton Kutcher.

Yeah, you're right. You know, like he owns Uber and Geisha House.

Like, but I'm driven to call more women geniuses and moguls and all that stuff because I think we just need to claim. Okay, so let's claim that. I'll claim that for you today. Thank you. And as a fellow Boston girl, Yes. I feel like when I was looking at, you know, kind of like looking at all the stuff you do and just thinking thematically about what to talk about today, I mean, we've had a lot of very similar paths, you and I, and not just because we were born, like, you know, in close proximity of each other, like, but we have really, I mean, we've been in this biz for a minute.

Been in this biz for a minute.

And we've been together in a lot of it. So it's very, very nice to see you and to have you here.

I love being here and to even be someone that you would say is on a similar journey because I— you were a little ahead.

Yes, I was the— I was 10.

I'm like about 10 years older than you. For my generation, for anyone who came up in New York and took classes at UCB and everything, it was like you were the one doing it. Like you were the one succeeding. With all the mean, unaccepting men in comedy. Do you know what I mean?

Well, yeah. I mean, I think both you and I are used to, and I wanna talk about it, you and I are used to being one or the only woman in a room full of men a lot, for a lot, especially in the beginning of our career and what, how that shaped us. Cambridge, Massachusetts, you're born and raised. Now Cambridge was always where smart people lived and their smart parents. Yes. Did you have— were you considered, like, a smart kid in school?

I was always considered a bright kid. Yeah. When I was younger, I think I was, like, kind of silent and chubby and friendly. Mm. And that was my vibe. And not funny. But that was back— I don't know if you felt this way. That was back in the '80s when, like, girls weren't really supposed to be funny.

Right. They were kind of good laughers.

Good laughers. Yeah. And if you were funny or tried to talk back, too much, it was kind of like you were— you had problems or you were, like, disruptive. You're right.

Like, the mischievous girls were the class clowns, which I look back now and they were just, like, feisty, interesting young women, but people thought they were kind of troublemakers. Totally.

At least in my school. And then being Indian too, it was so far from the— but also, like, I felt like I was still just, like, observing. But I noticed that, like, it wasn't until I was, like, in middle school where I was like, the class clowns were guys were just like kind of outrageous. They weren't really funny. But when you're 12 and 13, there is no difference between someone who's like willing to like jump off the side of the school building and being someone who's funny. It was like all just like one thing. Totally. So no one was examining it really. Right, right. And I think so for my parents too, like at that time, being funny in school was so tied to like kind of like an, again, disruptive, like non-academic. Yeah. Like you don't have a good path if you're like a funny kid. That's what I mean.

Yeah, you're kind of like—

Yeah, you're a mischievous kid.

You're speaking out in class, you're kind of not paying attention. Yes. And I bet you had the same thing. I mean, maybe, maybe even more because your parents, you know, moved to the US when you, when they, your mom was pregnant with you. Yes. Yeah. And so like, you know, they're like, we don't need you to be the one that's cracking jokes. Yep. In class. And I, I had parents who were, uh, teachers. So it was like, don't, like the funny kid is the one that's often like the, the teacher is having to deal with.

Having to deal with. Yeah.

But they, but they call you Mindy. Your nickname because from Mork and Mindy.

So it was a real, like—

That's a real mixed message.

Well, they— my parents immigrated here in the '70s, and nobody in entertainment on either side of the family, but they did, like, love comedy. Loved it. Like, and I think for us too, where it's like, it wasn't like we were coming home and having, like, these, you know, always, like, these deep chats. But we would just, like, sit in front of the TV, and watch musty TV. They love Seinfeld. Mm-hmm. They love Friends. They love The Cosby Show. Is that okay to say? Sure.

I mean, we all did at one point.

At one point, right? I can say it. At one point. But I remember so distinctly when I was, like, 11 or 12, and I was, of course, obsessed with Saturday Night Live. Yeah. We would watch Chris Farley on Saturday Night Live.

Was that your cast?

Yes. It was, like, Sandler, Chris Farley. But honestly, from Dana Carvey, to Bill Hader feels like the time, which is a long span. But we would see— Is it Matt Foley? Yeah. Matt Foley.

And that character, Chris Farley's character, Down by the River.

Down by the River. Classic, iconic character. And he's, like, I think, one of the funniest people of all time. I agree. And when he, you know, he'd fall on the coffee table, and I remember laughing at it so, so much and showing it to my parents, like, recording it. And I remember my mom being very worried. And being like— 'Cause I was overweight, and I think she was like— And so she was like, "I don't—" She once sat me down when I was like 14 and was like, "I don't want you to be like that." Oh, that's really interesting.

Right. Like, don't feel like you need to be a clown.

And I think she thought that like, "Okay, my overweight daughter, who's not fitting into the mainstream of culture, will feel like the way to be accepted and funny is to be like Chris Farley." Now, the majesty of Chris Farley, like, I would only be so lucky as to have been like Chris Farley, but as a girl, In the mid-'90s, that was, like, not a great path.

I love that we're talking about this, 'cause it's such an interesting point, which is young women, especially in the late '80s and '90s, their way into comedy, like how you get in, was really fraught in a way that men just did not have to worry about. They didn't have to worry about being physical and that seeming like it was putting people off. They didn't have to worry about, like, them being too sexualized. They didn't have to worry about a ton of stuff, I think. That much like you, watching comedy at a young age and being like, "I don't know. I wanna live in this world. I don't know how to get into it." And it was inhabited by really loud, physical men for the most part. And then finding the women who I loved, who I just kind of studied. And for me, it was like, "Okay, where did they study? Where did these women start?" So it was like, "Oh, I wanna go to Chicago. I'm just gonna go there." And when you were— Like, did you do comedy at Dartmouth?

Did you do improv? I did short-form improv. We all did! You know, it's so funny. The two things that brought me so much joy in college are so mortifying to me now, but it's where I made so many great friends. I did short-form improv with the Dog Day Players at Dartmouth.

Incredible. Are the Dog Day Players still there?

Dog Day Players is still there. Incredible. And they're so— And every so often, like every couple of years, I'm sure you feel this way, like, they'll come to LA and I'll meet them, or I'll see them at Dartmouth when I go up. And they're so cool now, and they do long-form, and they— They also have that, like, studying thing where they've seen every episode of Parks and Arrested Development, Larry Sanders, you know what I mean? They know everything. A kinship to these people that are 25 years younger than me. But the difference is that, like, the guys in the troupe are feminist, the women are unafraid to be who they are. They're all sort of activists. Like, all the stuff that I struggled with back then to do because it wasn't— appealing. Yeah, we still did. I wanted to be as funny as Adam Sandler and do Opera Man, but I also wanted a boyfriend and to lose my virginity. And in the late '90s, it was like those two things were maybe, like, did not—

they seemed mutually exclusive at the time. Oh, yeah. A cappella group you were also in. I love an a cappella group. Yes.

Yes, I was in an a cappella group.

And what song? Did you ever have a solo?

I had one solo. And what was the song? "9 to 5" by Dolly Parton. Yes. Um, sang it badly. It was one of those things. You know what's nice is, like, I don't have a good voice, but I have, like, a— I can, like, carry a tune. I think I have a good enough voice for a comedy person. And it was, like, that nice thing about being in a group of women, 'cause they're like, "Clearly, one person should have all the solos." But they're like, "No, no, no." Of course. "That's not nice. Like, let Mindy have a solo." So, we would— I would sing "9 to 5." Yeah.

And that a cappella group's name was?

Hey, man, it was called the Rockapellas.

Okay? I mean, I just— I love a pun.

It was called the Rockapellas. At the time, it was considered to be the coolest group if you were a woman at Dartmouth. Of course! And I mean, from my humble opinion, it was.

I think a cappella's very cool. And also, now I would say it is cool because—

Amy, this is such a bunch of bullshit. Like, you're being so nice here, but it's so lame. No, no, I disagree.

I don't— Here's why. Because even then, I don't even mean I mean, in hindsight, anyone who tries something, yeah, okay, that's cool.

I guess if you apply like the golden rule of like, we should all be putting ourselves out there, then it is cool. But it's like a bunch of people being like, shoopy dooby be bop.

I know. That's not, I know. It was the same thing with improv. Like improv, like, you know.

Short form improv. Tough. And I, again, all my formative years, some of the, all the boys I had crushes on in college were doing like, Like short-form improv, terrible, terrible. And yet, it's so lame. Long-form improv is cool though.

Stand-up is the coolest. Back then, if you were in improv or sketch group, you'd have your costumes and wigs, or you'd be warming up and stuff like that. You're right. A cappella and improv, both you have to warm up, like usually outside.

You're like zip, zap, zopping. That's not a cool—

And I used to be like, "We're cool." But then I'd see a stand-up just literally throw their cigarette on the ground with a leather jacket and go on stage, and I'd be like, "Oh, okay." After you left Dartmouth, did you move to New York?

I lived in New York for 3 years.

Okay. And you had some fun— I always love to ask people about their fun jobs, like their weird jobs. You had some good weird jobs, right?

I had some really good weird jobs. What were some of your weird jobs? Uh, the weirdest job I had was that I was a PA at Crossing Over with John Edward, the psychic. Um, the psychic, right? And he would do readings in the room and be able to tell if someone had, like, a dead relative who was trying to contact them. What was weird about it? Um, all that. I can't believe you're asking.

Yeah, what was your— like, now, do you believe in, um, do you— have you ever had a psychic experience?

Do you go to psychics? I am not— I don't, I don't go to psychics, but I would. Same. And I've gotten And as I've gotten older, even though I know more, I've gotten more superstitious than I used to be.

To quote Michael Scott, "I'm not superstitious, but I am a little stitious." I kind of feel like, you know, there's all different levels of, like, woo-woo, as Rachel Dratch would say, and whether or not you're open to it in your life. And it is kind of a funny catch-22 where people are like, "You have to be really open to it." for it to, like, you have to open your channel for it.

I have the most losery astrological sign and the most losery number on the Enneagrams.

Wow. I love to, 'cause there's no loser number in the Enneagram.

No, you have to say it.

But what would be your loser num— what would you think is a loser num—

I'm Cancer and I'm 6.

Well, but I would say a 6 is very sharp. Like a 6 is like— Thank you, Amy. I, but I have to say, I don't know that much about 6s.

Yeah, because it's, you know.

But it's the most common number.

It is. Yes. Yeah, I definitely think it's accurate. Yeah. I feel seen. I haven't been able to use it practically to make my life better.

I'm gonna send you some fun GIFs or GIFs, however you like to say it.

Please send me some GIFs or GIFs.

I'm gonna send you some fun Enneagram 6 GIFs and GIFs that you're gonna love.

I think they're a lot like the Harry Potter homes, you know, where everyone's like, I'm a Gryffindor.

What's your Harry Potter thing? I'm a straight up Slytherin. Dude, that's cool. Slytherin is cool. I wish I was a Slytherin. What are you? I wanna be Gryffindor, but no, I think I'm a Hufflepuff, which is also fine.

I wanna refute it, but listen.

All right. Say it. I'm right back at you. Okay. But back to— Okay, so you had some interesting jobs, but I wanna talk about Matt and Ben for a second because that show was— I remember when that show— For people that don't know, what was Matt and Ben? KELLY] Yes.

Okay. So, I was babysitting at the time, and my friend was a substitute teacher, a New York public school substitute teacher, my friend Brenda. And we were kind of miserable. And I had applied to be a page at the NBC page program, and I was certain I was gonna get it, and then I didn't. And so, we were just kind of like low-level, depressed, post-9/11, just like in jobs. Like, "Why am I even in New York? Like, I have no access to anything." And we started just improvising, and I kind of— adopted this character of, like, "Ben Affleck," in quotations, 'cause obviously we didn't know them at all. And she did Matt Damon. And then we were like— We'd just be doing these characters for, like, 10, 15 minutes, and we're like, "Could we do something with this, actually, as opposed to just entertaining ourselves?" And all of our friends thought it was so stupid. Yeah. Great. Crazy. And we just said, like, "Let's write a little play about the creative process between friends and competition." which has been interesting to me for a long, long time. And competition between friends who you dearly love each other, but you're also looking out for yourself.

And we were 21 or 22 writing about what we imagined Matt Damon and Ben Affleck were when they were 21, 22. It's so psychotic. Like, if I was Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, I'd be like, "This is crazy." Have you ever talked to them about it? I have met Matt Damon once. And Ben Affleck, like, a handful of times. And I think they think it's weird. This is a real person. They've been nothing but gracious. Of course. It's a very strange thing. I would not be nice if someone was playing Mindy Kaling in a play. Oh, I would try to destroy them with my lawyers. My team of lawyers would descend upon them and crush them. But to their credit, Matt and Ben Affleck have been so—

What if Matt and Ben played— What if Ben played you?

That would be pretty fun. I'd try to crush him with my lawyers. You'd crush him.

Very smart. Yeah. Cease and desist, babe.

Just sign it. Right away. Like, padlock the theater. I'm gonna take all that good accountant money from you. And accountant 2.

I remember even at the time, I was like, "This is radical." Because it was exactly— it was like two young women kind of assuming what would be in the heads of— You know, they were— Matt and Ben were archetypes for just young men working together and figuring out life together. And I remember you guys making that show, and I was like, "This is radical." This is— Oh my God. That's so— It was! It was very cool.

Well, thank you for saying that. I mean, it was so liberating to not have to worry about being pretty. Like, we were dressed as men. It was— Obviously, we didn't invent camp, but we got to discover how fun it was to just play men, but really real. And it was great to just— We didn't have to worry about any of the things that our contemporaries were kind of worrying about because we wrote the script, we directed it ourselves, and— It went to, like, Fringe, right?

Edinburgh?

So, we did it at the Fringe Festival. We got into it. Went to the Fringe Festival. We won the Fringe Festival, then it moved to Off-Broadway. And that's when it started getting, like, attention. That's when, like, a couple celebrities came and saw it. And that's how I moved to LA and how I got hired on The Office.

You go from Matt and Ben to basically being the only woman in a writer's room at The Office. You are the only woman and the only woman of color in an incredibly smart, hyper-talented, and— Nice group of men, but who— but still, it is your first job.

Yeah. I mean, you come from that world. It's competitive. And it's like— And so, I think that going into that room, like, a lot of people now will be like, "Wow, I can't believe you got hired on The Office. You were so young. You must feel so great." But you were, like, looking— When I look at the people who were— I was working with, they had been working since they were 21, you know, and had already had Emmys. So, I still felt like— I was behind. So, I think— But I will say also, like, I was such a workaholic. It helped that I was, like, friendless in Los Angeles and had no hobbies, 'cause I was just obsessed with work. I was dazzled by, like, Mike, BJ, Paul Lieberstein, Greg, you know? And who wouldn't be? Like, I had never been in a writer's room, and then I'm with these guys who are, like, even to this day, I consider some of the very best comedy writers. Then later, like, Lee Eisenberg, Gene Stupnitsky, like, just as dazzling. And so, I really wanted to impress them. I really wanted to date someone. Some of them.

And I was varying degrees of successful in those cases. And when Kelly Kapoor—

was that written— Like, how did you find out you were going to be on the show?

The way that I got the part was, I think, BJ had written this episode called "Diversity Day," and I think one of the funniest episodes in The Office ever. Incredible. And Greg decided that it would be the second episode. And in order for it to be funny that, like, Michael Scott was offending a room of people, it didn't— it wasn't as funny if it was just, like, all white. Like, he needed to be offending some people. And so, I was so lucky to be in the writers' room and being Indian, 'cause he's like, "Would you play someone that he offends and then slaps him?" And I was— I mean, I was just content to be a comedy writer for the rest of my life. That was, like, my dream come true. So, to be on camera was, like— just, like, outrageous. The one thing I think is so groundbreaking about The Office was that at that time, the aughts, like, to be on a show where you didn't have to be, like, a straightforwardly hot woman. Like, the whole point is, you know, and this is a real Greg Daniels thing, it's like, "What is beautiful is what is real." And that wasn't very many shows.

That's right. That's right. I also, like, love, and I'm sure you feel this way too, actually, maybe you don't, but I love being a meme. It makes me feel young. Are you kidding me?

It's my dream. When people send me a— Like, I've actually been like, "Can I send people my own memes?" Oh, do it.

It's such a mic drop.

It might be too weird. But I— It is— There's no higher compliment.

I send people memes of Keli saying, "This day is bananas," all day long to Dave and Ike, our friends' dating app.

I mean, Keli Kapoor is, to me, the definition of what the young people would say, like, someone who has main character energy. Like, she does have— She is in her own— world, her own show, in that show.

It's fun to be— and nice, I think, to be a— You know, she is a tertiary character, but believes she's a main character. That's a really nice— She has one line every 3 episodes.

Yeah, she's in her own very intense play and drama forever. And then the show does, like— I would say, like any good character, the show, like, you know, and you know from writing, you start to realize what people's strengths are, and you start to write to it. The show starts to realize, like, "Oh, what Keli can do is be in this kind of fierce, competitive fantasy world that can allow us to, like..." Like, you shoot a lot of threes in that show because you, like... Thank you. That character is able to go to some really sharp and funny places.

Well, she thinks she's the hottest person at the office and feels bad for Pam. She is. You know? And thinks Ryan's a huge cat. And that she's destined for fame. And so that is a fun— I mean, it's so fun to play delusional characters. And then to be able to then be delusional on The Mindy Project with a different character was fun.

Okay, good. That's a good segue because you go from— I just want to say you ended up writing more Office episodes than anybody else. Thank you for saying that. Okay, so everybody needs to know that. So all your Office episodes that you love, that everybody's watching every night, There's a high probability that Mindy wrote it. Like, my publicist was like, "This is a talking point that needs to come across, Amy." I mean, I could talk about this with you forever, and maybe it's too kind of inside baseball, but the way you enter the business, you entered the business as a writer, and then, like, in that same time, became a performer, and you're also a producer. And all those things have, like, different pros and cons. You really did do it for Mindy. You created— You were like, "I'm gonna write, create, and star in this show." And there's nothing harder.

There's nothing harder. And there's nothing more gratifying. Like, I was so obsessed with it. I mean, and then coming from The Office, where I had been there for 8 years, had, like, a line every episode. You know, I was thinking about, like, recently, just, like, call sheets. And to be, like— The call sheet, for people who don't know, but they might know, is, you know, it's every day, it just announces the hierarchy of the production.

I love a call sheet so much. I could stare at it forever. For people that don't know, it's one piece of paper that tells you your entire day, week, month, and in many ways, your life. You're exactly right. It tells you who is number 1, who is number 2, who is number 3, who is number 4.

It lists the importance in descending order of the people that are there. And so, for years on that show, as is obvious and should be, like, Steve is number 1, playing Michael Scott, and Kelly is number 11. And it's not like I, you know, to come at the— we just talked about the first season when I was just lucky to have that first, you know, in episode 2, being able to be in that scene with Steve, and to be able to be in SAG, and be able to actually do all that. That's huge. But 8 years later, I was like, "Number 11 gets a little old." And I was like, "I really want to see what it's like to literally just have more lines, and to be able to take on the thing of, like, being the comedy engine of a show." And I, you know, I talked to Ike a lot about this, and I think you did this with Parks, and probably on SNL too, but, like, It's a skill to be able to be the star of a sitcom and come in and just be like, "My engine is on from 7 o'clock in the morning until we wrap." And I am just like, I had to bring the best out of other people and wake them up first thing in the morning.

And kind of like a constant host. Yeah. Yeah. And it's— And you were watching people leave all day. That was the other thing that was so sad.

On Friday night, you're just waving goodbye to all your friends.

Everyone's wrapping, and they're like, "Have a good weekend!" You're like, You too? Like, it's just the saddest goodbye.

But at the same time, I felt like the days were so much shorter than when I had one line at The Office. Yeah. Like, the day flows by because it's just, like, funny scene after funny scene. Entire departments who are there to help you do your job the best. Yeah. You know? And that was, like, such a joy. I mean, it's so obvious to say this about being a star of your own show, but, like, that was— it was what I was longing for. And to assemble my own writing staff, so many of whom, like, like Lang Fisher, Tracy Wigfield, Ike Davies, Matt Wurter.

Who are doing a great new show right now, Four Seasons with Tina.

Yeah. And so, to be able to work with all these people that made me better, inspired me, and—

Let's talk about our friend Ike Bernholtz, who was here and who you met on that show. Yeah. And Dave Stassen. Those guys are— I mean, let's just— Ike is listening, so we should say something nice about him.

We should say something nice about him.

Look at us making sure that the white guy is taken care of. Feel comfortable and seen.

Look at us. It's just because, you know, his personality is that like he would do that for us. He would. Meditieren, Yoga, Joggen. Nichts entspannt mich. Echt? Mich entspannt meine Steuer total. Steuer? Wie Finanzamt?

Die Steuererklärung? Ja, ich habe ganz locker über 1.000 € Zuschuss bekommen.

Hast du geheime Connections? Nö, nur die WISO Steuer App.

Wow. Und das ist einfach?

Klar, die macht fast alles automatisch. Plötzlich fühle ich mich so entspannt. Hol dir dein Geld zurück. Tiefenentspannt mit WISO Steuer.

The other thing is that I love that you've spoken about with Mindy Project is like in many ways it is a tribute to your mom. Yeah. And because your mom was an OB-GYN nurse, doctor.

Doctor, yeah.

Yeah, sorry. OB-GYN doctor.

For Indian people, that's a huge distinction.

I know. I was so psyched to say that. They don't want to mix up. No, no, no. Okay. So she wasn't a doctor doctor though, was she? Oh, she was a doctor.

She was a woman doctor. Surely, surely. She was taking notes and the male doctor was—

Yeah, the male doctor would come in and finish the baby part. Yeah. No. But your character was kind of a tribute to her and your mom. Can you speak a little bit about your mom? You speak about her all the time.

And she seems to just be amazing. I love talking about my mom. So the character on The Mindy Project, I mean, she couldn't have been more like my mom. More different than my mom's personality. But I loved the world of playing an OB-GYN. My mom's had such a great personality because she spent her entire day with women telling— who told her the most personal things about their love lives and reproductive hopes and just everything and all their problems. It's such a personal relationship. And to have a world like that, I— it was like, honestly, some of it was laziness. I didn't have to research that much. I just understood what the office looked like and what the nurses were like. And so, But so, that was that. I also think it's nice for a lead character in a show, particularly when the character is so out there and sort of selfish and flawed, to have such a selfless job. You know, helping women. You were like, inherently, she's a good person, even if all she says all day is that she wants to get married and get railed by hot men. You know what I mean?

You're like, "Okay, she's helping women through some of the hardest transitions of their lives." Do you feel like you could—

After doing that show, do you feel like you could do Do you feel like you could deliver a baby?

Do I feel like I could deliver a baby? Do you think you could? I feel like I could affect the confidence that could really put a woman at ease. Ooh, yeah. Do you know what I mean? And I think this is like a real stupid actor over confidant talk. I feel like I could figure it out.

I think you could.

I've had 3 kids. I feel like—

I was watching. Yeah, I feel like you could deliver a baby. Thank you. I think, I mean, I have a problem where I think I can do things that I wouldn't be able to do.

Like what? Deliver a baby. Deliver a baby. I feel like I could.

I don't want to, but I feel like— I feel there's a part of me that's like, I could at least be enthusiastic about, like, getting people to push.

I think there's some parts that would freak me out a little bit. Yeah. Sewing a lady back up.

Yeah, we don't need to do that. Let a nurse do it. We're gonna get somebody to come in and finish it up. I can talk. I just mean the delivery part.

Yeah, I don't think I could do a C-section.

Like, I have a— Yeah, no, C-section, forget it. No, I'm not gonna do that. You know what? I take it back. We shouldn't do it. We shouldn't do it. We shouldn't do it. We shouldn't be around anyone who's pregnant. Oh, and then before I move on to more TV stuff, I do wanna talk about, we had a really fun trip one time, you and I, where we went to Cannes together. Yeah. For Inside Out. And it was like, I've never been before or since. I've never been back to Cannes.

It was really glamorous.

And it was very glamorous. It was the first time I had ever been on that kind of like international, like press tour, like on the steps of the—

Amy, I think about that press tour so much. I do too. I think about it a lot. One, it was so hot and sweaty. Yeah. Very hot and sweaty. Like, we were always in the beating sun. Yeah. And like— but beautiful. Yes. But always like I was sweating through my clothes constantly. And I remember this distinctly, and maybe this is offensive, that we would be doing an international junket, and unlike an American junket, it would be like, the questions would be like, I don't know, maybe because of, I don't know, culturally, it was just a— Ruder, let's say it.

Why are you—

You are so fat.

You're smiling, but your face is not nice to look at. Your face is not nice. Why do you think that people like to look at your face?

In America, a fat, unsmiling woman can be star. We've read you can— You have your own sitcom, but you are fat.

Yes. "You are obviously Hufflepuff, and yet you believe you're Gryffindor." Stuff like that.

"You play Joy, but you are not in your 20s?" "Yes, and you didn't smile at me when I was asking you a question, so I don't find you joyful at all." And so, okay, remember, you know that Javier Bardem clip when he's on a junket that has gone viral where someone's like, he was working with Penélope Cruz, and he's a European journalist, is like, "So you work with your wife? You must be crazy to work with a woman like that you're married to. Most people would want to kill her." 'If they had to do such a thing.' And he's like, 'I find that very offensive.' And I was like, watched that, and I was like, 'Oh, like, it's only—' I could never imagine sticking and being— having a spine in an international press junket and being like, 'How dare you, sir?' I was like, just laugh.

I mean, I feel— let me ask you, what are your generational pronouns? How do you identify? Are you a millennial? Do you identify as millennial? Hey, this is—

This is a very sore topic for me. Okay. Because for a while, I was considered a Zennial. Okay. Which was a— have you heard of the Zennial?

Zillennial?

Zillennial. Zillennial. No, I don't. I'm— This is making you be a millennial, by the way. This is making me be a millennial. But I was like, oh, thank God. Because when I was growing up, like, when I was, like, in middle school, like, the movie Singles was out. Yeah. And I was like, that's, to me, Gen X. That's Gen X. You know, Ben Stiller. Yes. That's Gen X, right? Yeah. And then now, Zaniel went away, and now they're just like— people are just like, "You're Gen X." Like, Ike and Dave are like, "We're all Gen X together!" Well, you ha—

That's not true. They're making themselves younger than they are. You have a lot of Gen X qualities, I will say. And I love Gen X, so— I love Gen X too. But you have— but you're 10 years younger, so you might be, like, millennial. To your point about pleasing, like, getting somebody who's hard to please, I realize I have that with boomer men. Interesting. And I'm just a little bit, like, in their, like, mid-65. I'm like, "Heh." You know? It's a little, like, boss situation.

You saying that so resonates with me because I felt that way about Greg Daniels. Greg and, like, Conan. You know? And then, obviously, all the SNL people that were there when you were there. Like, I feel exactly the same way. But now I'm technically the same generation, which is breaking my heart.

Yeah, that's a little weird.

But I do feel that way because they were the gatekeepers. We didn't talk about Conan.

You were right.

You were—

You did get that page job. I was an intern at Conan. Oh, intern. So I didn't— When I was still in college, I applied to be an intern at Conan. That's actually— That job is what made me thought that I maybe would get the page job. Yeah. Got it. Because those internships were considered hard to get. Mm-hmm. And that's where I first learned what comedy writers did. Although, like, a variety show comedy writer is such a different job than a sitcom comedy writer. And I actually think the personalities of a variety show comedy writer is very different than a sitcom guy personality.

How is it different?

I think that there's, um— Well, I think of one as, like, a quintessentially New York job, although, of course, there's variety shows out on the West Coast. And one is, like, an LA job. I think they are both very funny, but there's, like, a more— This is not true, but this is the way I thought of it. But, like, there was more of, like, a cerebral, darker energy to, New York variety show writers, right? Where it was like, "Joke, joke, jokes. How do we get the best jokes? Monologue, sketches. It's gotta be quick and funny, and then you're done." If you live or die by hard jokes. And then the sitcom writers, which is like, "Story, and let's think about the characters." And so, as someone who wanted to be in the New York world, but that was slammed— the door slammed shut in my face, I kind of came came up in this other world. And so, I always thought like, "Oh my God, that's so intimidating." That's why I guest wrote on SNL, which is where I— I think that was the first time I met you. Okay.

I was trying to remember the first time we met. Was it when you were guest writing? I was guest writing. What year was that?

Do you know? 2005. Yeah. Sure. And that was when I met you and Tina. And I remember this, and I don't know why I remember this story, and I'm not proud of it. And I don't know why I would possibly come up with two women that I admire and just came up. I don't know, but we were somewhere, and I was like, "Yeah." I just wanna lose £30. And the two of you stopped and were like, what? That is too much weight. And I remember I was so happy for like 3 weeks after that. I was like, wow, Amy and Tina don't think I'm a fat load. Like, I was so happy. No, ma'am. Never. Even in the OTTs, like, you guys are like, what are you crazy? But I was thinking like, why would I have told that to them? That's so weird.

Well, I, I would say because if, if we're to get real, it's because that's how women talk to each other. Each other. Is that— I think it is. Like, I think we all—

like, Weight Watchers, it was because at the time there was a conversation about Weight Watchers.

I think, you know, we were like— we just like everybody else were like constantly trying to figure out, um, everybody's relationship to being on camera. Yes. And I do think that for better or for worse, what women do for each other and to each other is they talk about their bodies to each other. Like, we are— we like, you know, it's one of the things I love so much, and I, I am sure you're the same way. Like, I love about my female friends is I can really We say, like, "I'm feeling this way and that way," and it's kind of how we, like, say hello.

No, I mean, I think to be able to be with two of my heroes and have them acknowledge— 'Cause you could have easily been like, "We don't ever think about it. We're naturally thin." Do you know what I mean?

Can you imagine? Yeah. People are like, "I don't know what you mean. I don't understand.

I just eat whatever I want." I mean, for you to say that, to say that, that you weren't just like, "We are naturally thin. We eat whatever we want." You didn't. And so I think that that was a really kind— It was a kind act. Kindness for you to acknowledge, like, "Oh, yeah." So I could see that in my heroes. But it is really fascinating and nice that culture has changed so much.

It has, but it has and it hasn't, right? Because we're still asking people about their weight. We're still asking people about their bodies. I mean, I actually really try— I have a couple rules that I never say out loud on this podcast, but one of them is I try not to talk about people's bodies. Yeah. It's like, people's bodies are their own business.

If you had the male cast of Off Campus here, I just want them to throw me against that bookshelf.

Yeah. And they'd flex and they'd be fine with it. I know. It's a fine line.

And she can't. You can't. Yeah.

You can't. But you break— And it's good.

It's good that you can't. It's good that you—

Okay. But this is a good segue into the— Okay. Because you have made— Into what? Into not suitable for work. Oh, okay.

Okay. Yes. Yes. What you can't do. Yes.

What you can't do. Yeah. I'm so surprised. I was wondering, "What is this a segue to?" But you have a new show out on Hulu, Not Suitable for Work, and it is— you've called it kind of the third in a trilogy.

I'm really trying to get that I have a trilogy, that I'm like Peter Jackson.

You're a mogul. You have a trilogy.

I have a trilogy. Just like me.

I mean, one of the things about being a mogul is you have to start talking like everything you did was, like, a perfect—

You know, it's all part of a master plan that I—

A master plan.

I have to embody that more. Yeah. That things are not just like accidental. No. It's just whatever's happening. No. Making it up on the spot.

This makes sense because this is the third in the installment, but you have made 3 TV shows, Never Have I Ever, Sex Lives of College Girls. Sex Lives of College Girls, thank you. And Not Suitable for Workplace. All 3 are like, I mean, they're very, very different, but what would you say is a unifying theme in all of them?

I think I love writing for underdogs. Yeah. And ambitious people, and people with lots of big wants and needs, both romantically and professionally, and who feel like they don't have access to it. Mm-hmm. And that's sort of, I think, the thing in common with all three of those shows.

Yeah. And a lot of horny people.

Working on Not Suitable for Work, I mean, this cast is— They're so funny. They're so good. And they were all— None of them were unknown. They'd all had, like, a lot of success, but I wouldn't necessarily say that they were, like, super, super well known yet. But Will Angus was in a very popular sketch troupe. Ella Hunt was on that wonderful show Dickinson. Avantika was in Mean Girls. But this is just a way to have them all together. And they're super funny. They're super appealing, and I loved working with them.

Avantika is who we spoke to today to get the question for you. Really? And Avantika is— So we did a— You know, we do this thing at the beginning where we talk while behind our guests' back. And I really wanted to speak to Avantika for a couple of reasons. One is she is like, you know, you are the example of what she watched growing up. You were— representation in real physical form. Somebody who wrote their own parts, who created their own stuff for themselves, and who also, like you said, enjoy— You enjoy being entertained. Your shows are not homework.

No, I think I'm not writing shows for, like, television studies professors. Do you know what I mean? Not that I don't think that's an important job and things, but I want to do something that's, like, when times are hard. You know, when, like, my mom was sick and we wanted to watch something, it's like, "We watch Modern Family." It was like, "I want to watch something that's, like, legitimately so funny." Yeah. And I like seeing people fall in love, and I love, like, great costumes and doing something in the city. I also love The Office, where it has not those qualities, but it's super funny. But I do know what you're saying, and I take it as a compliment.

ELISA] And she spoke about being around you and, like, your curiosity, and also just, like, your curiosity your curiosity about other people's lives and young lives, and really, your support as a producer and as a person. And also, Mindy, just what I think is so impressive about you is you feel like you're working within the system, and you're also still a person like the rest of us, I guess. So it's like you are this mogul who also is like, like just along for the ride like the rest of us. Like, it's very hard to do both of those things. And I think you do it really, really well. Thank you, Amy. Oh my gosh. And she speaks about that. And it's funny, her question is so cute. It was like, "What is your egot?" But she was like, "What are four things that Mindy—" Four? I know. I said, "That's too many things." That's so many things.

I agree. Do you feel this way where if you see a movie you love, or you listen to an album, or you see a Broadway musical, you're kind of like, "Should I try to write a Broadway musical?" Should I write a musical? Or should I— Like, I'll listen to it, and I'll go to— I'll go— Which you're nailing. So now you should do the next thing.

I feel you.

I see something, and I'm like, "Should I try it?" Should I try that? And that's, like, I think, notoriously how bad art is formed, right? When people do stuff that they're not equipped to do, but have this delusional feeling that they can. And I've done that many times. But, um, you know what I'm really impressed by is, like, I always think about Jordan Peele and Greta Gerwig. Oh, yeah. And how, as does the rest of the world, but I love that Jordan was like, came from sketch comedy. And with Greta, like, coming from being an actress and, like, the muse of Noah Baumbach, and then being like, "Well, I want to direct." And then taking something like Barbie and making it, like, this great movie about feminism. And so— And now doing the Narnia stuff. Like, so I'm always really inspired by them. I think that that's the thing, is I'd love to be able to write and direct movies. Yes! Another thing, and this is not creative, but, like, I feel like my feed on Instagram is just always about how fleeting our time with our children is. It's just like frightening post after frightening post about how, like, "You have 18 summers with these people." Like, "I didn't know it was the last time I would pick him up." Exactly.

It's like, "Jesus Christ." These haunting things about these wonderful children that I love. And so I really want to be able to hang with them and be with them in a real way where they look back on it and they're like, "How was Mom able to do that?" but then also do these other— be there for us so much of the time. And I know I'll fail, but like, I really want to try to be there. My mom really set the bar. She was so busy. Like, we missed Thanksgivings because she was delivering a baby. She wasn't there for the school play. And I was the perfect match for her as a daughter because I just thought it was like glamorous. Yeah. And I was like, wow, Mom's like really doing a lot. But I have 3 kids. I don't know that they're going they're gonna think maybe one of them will be that way and the other two won't. So I gotta really, I gotta really invest in being them. So that's the second thing. What else would I wanna do? I don't wanna hold public office. No. No. I don't want to adopt like 7 kids.

I love the people who do that. Yeah. I can't. 3 is enough. 3 is a lot. I don't think I wanna like teach at a college.

You don't know that. You don't know that. Don't, don't rule that out. Think about this. Okay. I like this. Yeah. Think about this future though, like that you get to come in— like, I often think about, you know, like, the next decade. Think about coming in, like, a beautiful sweater, like Dartmouth, let's say. Drive in at 10 o'clock in the morning. You have your coffee. You know, you creak— the door creaks open, and there's, like, 150, like, kids staring at you, and you start your class. Nobody gets to interrupt.

You're done in an hour.

You know, you write a book about it, then you write a movie about it. That's all I'm saying is that.

I think that sounds— that does sound good. Doesn't that sound good? That does sound good. We don't have to grade papers. No papers. Nothing like that.

That's the part that's— It'll all be like robo— there'll be no paper. AI will be doing everything. Yeah, there'll be no paper.

I like that, or I also like when they— you get to a certain age, and then TV shows just want that kind of decrepit grand dame to come in. You just say a couple lines, and everyone's laughing. They just lift you onto a seat. Yeah.

I wanna get to the point where people are like, "She looks good." She looks good. This has been so fun, Mindy. Has it been? Yeah. Do you— I'm so— This is very Enneagram 6 of you. It is. That is very Enneagram 6 of you.

No, I'm stressed. Tell me why. No, I just, I love this so much. I've been very entertained by previous episodes. And I just, I'm just fast-forwarding to my nanny Jenny sitting on the sofa. And hoping that she doesn't click away.

No, she's gonna have— I mean, she's gonna be wrapped. And also, my last question to you is, like, what are you watching? Because I know you are, like, you're a pop culture consumer. Who is making you laugh these days? When you wanna— Like, you know, I know for me, it's hard for me to kind of watch comedy. Like, it's like— What do you watch to check out, tune out, laugh? You laugh? Like, feel like— is it a video? Is it TikTok? Is it a show?

Is it— I'm not on TikTok for no real reason. It's not like a decision, but I think it's tied to, in some way, like productivity. Like, I'm worried I'd be too into it. Damn, that's so true. But for me, uh, the biggest thing that I'm into— I mean, I, I do like a lot of dramas, um, and like your friend Emily Vibey love murder. But I think for me, I loved The Curse. Is that— that's the right name? It was the Nathan Fielder show. Yes. Really strange and— Really strange.

Let's talk about Nathan Fielder.

And Nathan Fielder, who is like, I think for people my age or women, he's a real heartthrob too.

He's a millennial heartthrob.

He's a millennial heartthrob. He's a millennial heartthrob. Big time. And I'm happy for him. He's so funny and talented. Yes. With Emma Stone. I loved that show. Yes.

That was a really good, weird show. Weird show.

And then, I mean, it's honestly like, it's like, "What don't I like?" Like, most of the time, I like stuff. Like, I like all the things that you would expect. Like, I love Abbott, and I love Hacks, and I like all the dramas. Like, who doesn't like The Pit? It's like, I like those things. And that's like, I love— It's such a delight to watch them and see people who are really good at their craft doing things.

Yeah, you're able to enjoy still knowing how things work. You're able— Like, kind of like in the very beginning when we started talking about it, which is like, It's like, you know how hard it is to make something good. Totally. Mindy Kaling, thank you for being here. Thank you for taking the red-eye.

Only for Amy Poehler.

I'm so happy you could do this. Thank you so much for doing it.

Thank you, Amy. It was such a good night.

It was so good. Thanks, everybody! Thank you so much, Mindy Kaling. You're always so honest and forthcoming and funny, and it was really great to have you. And, you know, Mindy and I got into a lot of really interesting topics, including being a working mother and deciding to just do the things you love and try to, as best you can, avoid the things that you hate. And I have a strong feeling about that. I feel like in motherhood, there's things that you like, you love, you feel neutral about, and you really don't like to do. And if you can try to avoid the things that you really don't like to do, then the rest, you know, the rest might come a little easier. Some people get stressed around, you know, bath time. Some people don't wanna go to the park. Some moms hate taking their kids to get shots. I mean, who loves that? But you know what I mean. Either way, I would just say, give yourself a break. You're not supposed to love everything, and it doesn't make you a bad mom if you don't. Try to offload anything that you really, really, really have a hard time handling handling, and don't ever feel guilty about it because, God, we just really beat ourselves up, and enough's enough, you know?

So I guess that's my polar plunge today. I don't know. I just am thinking about all the ways in which we make it harder for ourselves and are harder on ourselves. Let's try to take some lessons from this interview and do a better job this week. Do a better job of not doing a good job. Okay. Bye! You've been listening to Good Hang, the executive Executive producers for this show are Bill Simmons, Jenna Weiss-Berman, and me, Amy Poehler. The show is produced by The Ringer and Paperkite. For The Ringer, production by Jack Wilson, Kat Spillane, Kaya McMullen, and Alea Xaneres. For Paperkite, production by Sam Green, Joel Lovell, and Jenna Weiss-Berman. Original music by Amy Miles.

I lie on the one who was really good, hey.