Mindy Kaling apologizes to men for being assertive by sending cupcakes

Publish date: 2024-07-09

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Mindy Kaling has been making appearances and doing interviews this week to promote the new season (Season 5) of The Mindy Project, which has now moved to Hulu. I’m still sad about that, by the way. I know the ratings weren’t great on Fox, but I always watched and enjoyed the show. Anyway, these are some assorted photos of Mindy at an event for Harry Potter, and at the NBC Universal upfronts. Mindy has been in NYC to do interviews, plus she did a sit-down during the annual Women in the World summit. She ended up talking about double standards and how to “apologize” to men for being an assertive woman and demanding respect. Some highlights:

How she apologizes for being assertive: “I am very assertive, to the point of being brusk and then I just send cupcakes with a note saying, ‘I am sorry for being so assertive, Love Mindy!’ In L.A., there is a cottage industry of apology gifts you can send for being too assertive as a woman. Flower arrangements, artisanal ice cream. You can send a puppy party for demanding respect. ‘I’m sorry I demanded respect at that meeting. Here’s a puppy party. Love Mindy.’ ”

She’s a flawed woman playing flawed characters: “I wanted to be a really flawed, delusion, funny character. Because as an actress, that’s way more fun. All the best parts are villains…I hope that young women look to me, Mindy Kaling, as a role model, but let me play the characters I want to play.”

Playing a character with her own name: “It made it feel authentic. It really does feel like you’re right up close and there’s no artifice to what you’re watching. The downside is that I’ve noticed that people just assume that you are your character… If you’re a man who shares [a name with] the same character, they’re like, ‘Oh, he’s not his character.’ I’ve noticed that, in general, media does not think the same thing of me. I think it’s a little sexist, actually. They would look at a man who’s playing that character and they’re like, ‘Oh what an actor artiste who can adopt that persona.’ And I get kind of jealous, actually, that that’s afforded to them.”

[From Vulture & People]

I realize she’s half-joking about sending cupcakes, but I think that’s really sly and funny if she actually does that. Like, “I know you were butthurt about how I’m BOSS in all aspects of my professional life, so here are some cupcakes to soothe your delicate feelings.” Here’s a clip from her panel discussion:

And here’s Mindy on the Today Show on Thursday. This is a really charming interview, but… I don’t know you guys? I think she tweaked her face a little bit and it’s really throwing me off?

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Photos courtesy of WENN.

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