Mindy Kaling
Episode of Good Hang with Amy Poehler · June 30, 2026 · 1 h 2 min
Amy Poehler talks with Mindy Kaling about her path from Dartmouth improv and Matt & Ben to The Office, The Mindy Project, and Not Suitable for Work.
Summary
Amy Poehler opened the episode with actor Avantika Vandanapu, a star of Mindy Kaling's Hulu series Not Suitable for Work, who recalled meeting Poehler on the set of Moxie, her early Bollywood career, and first meeting Kaling over escargot after sending her a DM at 17. Vandanapu described Kaling as intensely curious and spoke about what Kaling's work meant to her as a young Indian woman, then posed a question asking for Kaling's personal 'EGOT' of four life goals.
Kaling, who had taken a red-eye flight, discussed growing up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, her love of Saturday Night Live and Chris Farley, and her mother's worry that her overweight daughter would see clowning as the way to be accepted. Poehler and Kaling discussed how fraught it was for young women to enter comedy in the 1980s and 1990s. Kaling recounted short-form improv with the Dog Day Players and singing in an a cappella group at Dartmouth, odd jobs in New York including working as a PA on John Edward's Crossing Over, and co-creating the play Matt & Ben, which went from the Fringe festival to off-Broadway and led to her hiring on The Office.
Kaling described being one of the few women in The Office writers' room, getting cast as Kelly Kapoor for the Diversity Day episode, and wanting more than being 'number 11' on the call sheet, which led her to create and star in The Mindy Project, inspired in part by her mother's career as an OB-GYN. The pair reminisced about a Cannes press tour for Inside Out, generational identity, Kaling's internship at Conan and guest-writing at SNL, and how women talk about their bodies.
Kaling described Not Suitable for Work as the third in a trilogy of shows about ambitious underdogs, and answered Vandanapu's question by saying she would like to write and direct films, citing Jordan Peele and Greta Gerwig, and to be truly present for her three children. She closed by naming shows she enjoys, including The Curse, Abbott Elementary, Hacks and The Pitt. Poehler ended with a reflection urging mothers to offload tasks they dislike and not feel guilty.
Chapters
- 0:05
Introduction
Amy Poehler introduces Mindy Kaling and previews topics including The Office and Not Suitable for Work.
- 1:52
Avantika Vandanapu on Mindy
Vandanapu recalls Moxie, her Bollywood start, meeting Kaling, and poses a question about Kaling's personal EGOT.
- 9:34
Red-eyes and compliments
Kaling arrives off a red-eye and the pair joke about compliments, David Letterman, and being a mogul.
- 14:04
Growing up funny in Cambridge
Kaling discusses being a quiet child, watching SNL and Chris Farley, and her mother's worries about her becoming a clown.
- 18:23
Dartmouth improv and a cappella
Kaling recalls the Dog Day Players and her a cappella solo, and Poehler ranks improv, a cappella, and stand-up by coolness.
- 22:56
New York jobs, psychics and Enneagrams
Kaling describes working on John Edward's show and the pair discuss superstition, Enneagram types, and Harry Potter houses.
- 25:16
Matt & Ben
Kaling explains how the play about Matt Damon and Ben Affleck was created and led to her Office job.
- 28:37
The Office and Kelly Kapoor
Kaling talks about the writers' room, being cast for Diversity Day, loving being a meme, and writing the most episodes.
- 32:59
The Mindy Project
Kaling discusses leading her own show, call sheets, her writing staff, and her mother's influence on the OB-GYN premise.
- 39:25
Cannes and international press junkets
The pair recall the Inside Out press tour at Cannes and rude questions from international journalists.
- 41:57
Generations, Conan and SNL
They discuss generational identity, Kaling's Conan internship, variety versus sitcom writers, and body talk among women.
- 47:34
Not Suitable for Work
Kaling calls her new Hulu show the third in a trilogy about ambitious underdogs and praises its cast.
- 51:02
Mindy's future goals
Kaling answers Vandanapu's question, naming directing films and being present for her children.
- 56:09
What makes Mindy laugh and closing
Kaling names shows she enjoys and Poehler closes with advice on motherhood and guilt.
Key points
What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.
- Avantika Vandanapu
Vandanapu says Kaling's standout quality as a boss and mentor is her curiosity and constant questioning.
“she's such a curious person. Like she, Mindy asks so many questions”
- Avantika Vandanapu
Vandanapu says seeing Kaling on screen showed her that people like her exist and deserve a big platform.
“oh, people like me exist, and people like me are deserving of being put on a big platform”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling recalls her mother worrying that her overweight daughter would emulate Chris Farley's physical comedy to gain acceptance.
“I remember my mom being very worried and being like because I was overweight”
- Amy Poehler
Poehler argues that young women's entry into comedy in the late 1980s and 1990s was fraught in ways men did not face.
“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”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says today's Dartmouth improv troupe differs from her era in that the men are feminist and the women unafraid.
“the guys in the troop are feminist. The women are unafraid to be who they are”
- Amy Poehler
Poehler ranks stand-up as cooler than long-form improv, which she considers cooler than short-form improv and a cappella.
“Long form improv is cool though. Stand up is the coolest”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says Matt & Ben was conceived as a play about creative collaboration and competition between friends.
“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”
Linked moment · 28:37Skip to 28:37 using a listen link in the info box.
Mindy KalingKaling says Matt & Ben's off-Broadway run drew celebrities, moved to Los Angeles, and led to her being hired on The Office.
“That's when, like, a couple celebrities came and saw it. And that's how it moved to L.A. and how I got hired on The Office”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling explains she was cast because the Diversity Day episode needed non-white characters for Michael Scott to offend.
“in order for it to be funny that, like, Michael Scott was offending a room of people, it wasn't as funny if it was just, like, all white”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling considers The Office groundbreaking for allowing women on screen who were not conventionally glamorous.
“To be on a show where you didn't have to be like a straightforwardly hot woman”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says she loves being turned into a meme because it makes her feel young.
“I love being a meme. It makes me feel young”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says after eight years as number 11 on The Office call sheet she wanted to lead her own show.
“eight years later, I was like, number 11 gets a little old”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says giving her selfish, flawed lead character a selfless OB-GYN job made her inherently sympathetic.
“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,”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling contrasts New York variety show writers, whom she sees as darker and joke-driven, with story-focused sitcom writers.
“But, like, there was more of, like, a cerebral, darker energy to— uh, New York variety show writers, right?”
- Amy Poehler
Poehler says she has a personal rule to avoid discussing people's bodies on her podcast.
“I try not to talk about people's bodies. Because it's like people's bodies are their own business”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says the unifying theme of her three shows is ambitious underdogs with big romantic and professional wants.
“I love writing for underdogs and ambitious people and people with lots of big wants and needs, both like romantically and professionally”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says she aims to make genuinely funny comfort television rather than shows for academic study.
“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”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says that, inspired by Jordan Peele and Greta Gerwig, she would like to write and direct films.
“I'm always really inspired by them. I think that's the thing is I'd love to be able to write – And direct movies”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says one of her goals is to be genuinely present for her children while continuing her career.
“I really want to be able to hang with them and be with them in a real way”
- Mindy Kaling
Kaling says she avoids TikTok partly out of concern it would hurt her productivity.
“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”
- Amy Poehler
Poehler advises mothers to offload tasks they dislike and not feel guilty for not loving every part of parenting.
“give yourself a break. You're not supposed to love everything. And it doesn't make you a bad mom if you don't”
People
In the conversation
- Amy PoehlerAmerican actress, comedian and podcast host, formerly of Saturday Night Live
- Mindy KalingAmerican writer, actor and producer, creator of The Mindy Project, Never Have I Ever and Not Suitable for Work
- Avantika VandanapuAmerican actor, star of Not Suitable for Work and the Mean Girls movie musical
Discussed
- Chris FarleyLate American comedian and Saturday Night Live cast member admired by Druski
- Greg DanielsDeveloper and showrunner of the American version of The Office
- B. J. NovakWriter and actor on The Office who wrote the Diversity Day episode
- Ike BarinholtzComedian and actor who worked with Kaling on The Mindy Project
- Matt DamonAmerican actor cast as Odysseus in Nolan's film
- Ben AffleckDirector and star of The Town
- Brenda WithersKaling's friend and co-creator of Matt & Ben
- Tina FeyAmerican comedian who toured with Poehler
- John EdwardTelevision psychic whose show Crossing Over employed Kaling as a PA
- Javier BardemSpanish actor who co-stars in Cape Fear
- Jordan PeeleFilmmaker and former sketch comedian whom Kaling cited as an inspiration
- Greta GerwigActor-turned-director of Barbie whom Kaling cited as an inspiration
- Nathan FielderComedian and co-creator of The Curse, praised by Kaling
- Steve CarellAmerican actor and comedian, Colbert's office mate on The Dana Carvey Show
- David LettermanLate-night host who competed for The Tonight Show
Topics
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From the publisher
Mindy Kaling is a mogul, and she has a trilogy. Amy hangs with the creator of 'Not Suitable for Work' and talks about looking up to Chris Farley as a kid, whether she's a Hufflepuff or a Gryffindor, and the joys of being made into a meme. Host: Amy PoehlerGuests: Avantika Vandanapu and Mindy KalingExecutive Producers: Bill Simmons, Amy Poehler, and Jenna Weiss-BermanFor Paper Kite Productions: Executive producer Jenna Weiss-Berman, coordinator Sam Green, and supervising producer Joel LovellFor The Ringer: Supervising producers Juliet Litman, Sean Fennessey, and Mallory Rubin; video producers Jack Wilson, Belle Roman, and Aleya Zenieris; lighting director Caroline Jannace; audio producer Kaya McMullen; social producer Bridget Geerlings; video editor Drew van Steenbergen; and bookers Kat Spillane and Paige GarbariniOriginal Music: Amy Miles Make it a Hilton Honors Summer. https://www.hilton.com/ Check Allstate first for a quote that could save you hundreds: https://Allstate.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on September 29, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.