Mindy Kaling Popular Books

Mindy Kaling Biography & Facts

Vera Mindy Chokalingam (born June 24, 1979), known professionally as Mindy Kaling (), is an American actress, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. Known for her extensive work on television, she has received numerous accolades including two Screen Actors Guild Awards and the Tony Award, and six Primetime Emmy Awards nominations. She was recognized by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2013 and was awarded the National Medal of the Arts from President Joe Biden in 2022.She first gained recognition starring as Kelly Kapoor in the NBC sitcom The Office (2005–2013), for which she also served as a writer, executive producer, and director. For her work on the series, she was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series. She gained wider attention for creating, producing and starring as Dr. Mindy Lahiri in the Fox/Hulu semi-biographical sitcom The Mindy Project (2012–2017), that was inspired some events in her early life. She then expanded her career creating numerous shows such as the NBC sitcom Champions (2018), the Hulu miniseries Four Weddings and a Funeral (2019), the Netflix comedy series Never Have I Ever (2020–2023) and the HBO Max comedy series The Sex Lives of College Girls (2021–present).Her film career includes voice roles in Despicable Me (2010), Wreck-It Ralph (2012), and Inside Out (2015) as well as live action roles in No Strings Attached (2011), The Five-Year Engagement (2012), A Wrinkle in Time and Ocean's 8 (both 2018), and Late Night (2019), the last of which she also wrote and produced. She wrote two memoirs both reaching The New York Times Best Seller list. She also received a Tony Award for Best Musical as a producer for the musical A Strange Loop. In 2012, Kaling founded the production company Kaling International. Early life Kaling was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts to father Avudaiappan Chokalingam, an architect, and mother Swati Chokalingam née Roy-Sircar, an obstetrician/gynecologist (OB/GYN). She has an elder brother, Vijay. Her parents are from India and met while working at the same hospital in Nigeria. Her father, a Tamil raised in Chennai, was overseeing the building of a hospital wing. Her mother, a Bengali from Mumbai, was working as an OB/GYN. The family immigrated to the United States in 1979, the same year Kaling was born. Kaling's mother died of pancreatic cancer in 2012.Kaling has said she has never been called Vera, her first name, but has been referred to as Mindy since her mother was pregnant with her while her parents were living in Bengal. They were already planning to move to the United States and wanted, Kaling said, a "cute American name" for their daughter, and liked the name Mindy from the TV show Mork & Mindy. The name Vera is, according to Kaling, the name of the "incarnation of a Hindu goddess." Kaling 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 improvisational comedy troupe The Dog Day Players and a cappella group The Rockapellas, produced the comic strip Badly Drawn Girl in The Dartmouth (the college's daily newspaper), and wrote for the Dartmouth Jack-O-Lantern, the college's humor magazine.Kaling graduated from Dartmouth in 2001 with a bachelor's degree in playwriting. She was a classics major for much of college and studied Latin, a subject she had been learning since the seventh grade. She lists the comedy series Dr. Katz, Saturday Night Live, Frasier and Cheers as early influences on her comedy. Career 2002–2004: Career beginnings While a 19-year-old sophomore at Dartmouth, Kaling was an intern on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. She has said that she never saw a family like hers on TV, which gave her a dual perspective she uses in her writing. She thinks the "everyone against me" mentality is what she learned as a child of immigrants. She named her Mindy Project character Mindy Lahiri after author Jhumpa Lahiri. After college, she moved to Brooklyn, New York. She said one of her worst job experiences was as a production assistant for three months on the Crossing Over With John Edward psychic show. She described it as "depressing." During this same time, she performed stand-up comedy.Kaling devised her stage name after discovering while doing stand-up comedy that emcees would have trouble pronouncing her last name, Chokalingam, and sometimes made jokes about it. She toured solo and with Craig Robinson, who was later a fellow cast member of The Office. In August 2002, she portrayed Ben Affleck in an off-Broadway play called Matt & Ben, which she co-wrote with her best friend from college, Brenda Withers, who played Matt Damon. Time magazine named it one of their "Top Ten Theatrical Events of The Year", and it was "a surprise hit" at the 2002 New York International Fringe Festival. Initially, Withers and Kaling had, "for their own entertainment, mockingly pretended to be the best friends Matt Damon and Ben Affleck; that pretending spawned Matt & Ben, the goofy play that reimagined how Damon and Affleck came to write the movie Good Will Hunting."Kaling wrote a blog, Things I've Bought That I Love, which reemerged on her website on September 29, 2011. She write it under the name Mindy Ephron, "a name Kaling chose because she was amused by the idea of her 20-something Indian-American self as a long-lost Ephron sister." 2004–2011: Breakthrough and The Office In 2004, when The Office producer Greg Daniels was working to adapt The Office from the BBC TV series of the same name, he hired Kaling as a writer-performer after reading a spec script she wrote. He said, "She's very original ... If anything feels phony or lazy or passé, she'll pounce on it." When Kaling joined The Office, she was 24 years old and was the only woman on a staff of eight. She took on the role of Kelly Kapoor, debuting in the series' second episode, "Diversity Day". Her TV appearances include a 2005 episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, playing Richard Lewis's assistant. She is featured on the CD Comedy Death-Ray and guest-wrote parts of an episode of Saturday Night Live in April 2006. After her film debut in The 40-Year-Old Virgin with Steve Carell, Kaling appeared in the film Unaccompanied Minors as a waitress. In an interview with The A.V. Club, she stated that Kelly is "an exaggerated version of what I think the upper-level writers believe my personality is." Kaling directed The Office webisode The 3rd Floor. She directed the Season 6 episode "Body Language," which marked her television directorial debut. In 2007, she had a small part in License to Wed alongside fellow Office actors John Krasinski, Angela Kinsey, and Brian Baumgartner. She starred in the 2009 film Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian as a Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum tour guide. On September 15, 2011, when her contract was set to expire at the end of Season.... Discover the Mindy Kaling popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Mindy Kaling books.

Best Seller Mindy Kaling Books of 2024

  • Mindy Kaling synopsis, comments

    Mindy Kaling

    Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara

    In this book from the critically acclaimed, multimillioncopy bestselling Little People, BIG DREAMS series, discover the life of Mindy Kaling, the actor, writer, producer, and direc...

  • A Wrinkle in Time Movie Tie-In Edition synopsis, comments

    A Wrinkle in Time Movie Tie-In Edition

    Madeleine L'Engle

    A movie tiein edition of A Wrinkle in Time, now a major motion picturewith an introduction by director Ava DuVernay.In 1962, Madeleine L’Engle debuted her novel A Wrinkle in Time, ...

  • Thin synopsis, comments

    Thin

    Grace Bowman

    Bright, popular, pretty and successful, Grace Bowman had the world at her feet. So what drove her to starve herself nearly to death at the age of 18? And what, more importantly, ma...

  • My Life as a Goddess synopsis, comments

    My Life as a Goddess

    Guy Branum

    “Smart, fast, clever, and funny (As fck!)” (Tiffany Haddish), this collection of sidesplitting and illuminating essays by the popular standup comedian, alum of Chelsea Lately and T...

  • WorkParty synopsis, comments

    WorkParty

    Jaclyn Johnson

    First, we leaned in. Now we stand up.In this “muchneeded combo of real talk, confessions, and lessons learned along the way” (Chelsea Handler), Jaclyn Johnsonthe founder and CEO be...

  • American Fever synopsis, comments

    American Fever

    Dur e Aziz Amna

    WINNER OF THE ASIAN/PACIFIC AMERICAN AWARD FOR LITERATURE USA Today Best books of August Christian Science Monitor Ten Best Books of August The Millions Most Anticipated ...

  • Unfriending My Ex synopsis, comments

    Unfriending My Ex

    Kim Stolz

    “In this candid and insightful new memoir, Kim Stolz discusses the trials and tribulations of our obsession with social media and mobile technology...a Tweetworthy, shareworthy, In...

  • Five Fires synopsis, comments

    Five Fires

    Laura Lippman

    Everyone in smalltown Bellville is talking about a series of mysterious fires disrupting the typically tranquil summer. The authorities attribute them to heat lightning, but some B...

  • Bonkers synopsis, comments

    Bonkers

    Jennifer Saunders

    THE HILARIOUS, TOUCHING LIFE STORY OF THE ICONIC COMEDIAN AND NATIONAL TREASURE 'Fabulous? Yes. Funny? Absolutely' Mail on SundayJennifer Saunders' comic creations have brought joy...

  • Unwifeable synopsis, comments

    Unwifeable

    Mandy Stadtmiller

    NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK POST MARIE CLAIRE ELITE DAILY REFINERY29 ROMPER PRIDE PUREWOW“A gutsy book you need to read right now. Filled with hea...

  • The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl synopsis, comments

    The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl

    Issa Rae

    The “brilliantly wry” (Lena Dunham) and “lovably awkward” (Mindy Kaling) New York Times bestseller from the creator of HBO’s Insecure. In this universally accessible New York Times...

  • The Master Builder and Other Plays synopsis, comments

    The Master Builder and Other Plays

    Henrik Ibsen

    The four plays in this volume, written late in Ibsen's career as a dramatist, move away from his earlier preoccupation with people at odds with society to instead explore the inwar...

  • New Year, Same Trash synopsis, comments

    New Year, Same Trash

    Samantha Irby

    Comedian, blogger and essayist Samantha Irby is not going to be a better person this year than she was last. Nope. With a small group of woowoo others, Irby sets seventy microresol...

  • My Squirrel Days synopsis, comments

    My Squirrel Days

    Ellie Kemper

    Comedian and star of The Office and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and host of The Great American Baking Show Ellie Kemper delivers a hilarious, refreshing, and inspiring collection of ...

  • Youth synopsis, comments

    Youth

    Joseph Conrad

    'Then, on a fine moonlight night, all the rats left the ship.'Five men sit around a mahogany table, drinking claret. As the wine loosens their tongues, one tells a story from his y...

  • Like Brothers synopsis, comments

    Like Brothers

    Mark Duplass & Jay Duplass

    The multitalented writers, directors, producers, and actors (as seen on The League, Transparent, and The Mindy Project) share the secrets of their lifelong partnership in this uniq...

  • The Bassoon King synopsis, comments

    The Bassoon King

    Rainn Wilson

    From the threetime Emmy nominated actor, climate activist, and author of Soul Boom: Why We Need a Spiritual RevolutionRainn Wilson’s memoir is about growing up geeky and finally fi...

  • On the Outside Looking Indian synopsis, comments

    On the Outside Looking Indian

    Rupinder Gill

    A memoir of a young woman, the product of a strict upbringing by conservative Indian parents, who decides to go on a RamSingha, her Indian version of the rumspringa, and learns how...

  • The Anti-Cool Girl synopsis, comments

    The Anti-Cool Girl

    Rosie Waterland

    Brutal, brave, hilarious a fullfrontal memoir about surviving the very worst that life can throw at you.Rosie Waterland has never been cool. Growing up in housing commission, Rosi...

  • The Space Between synopsis, comments

    The Space Between

    Zara Mcdonald & Michelle Andrews

    There’s this weird gap in life that’s fuelled by cheap tacos and even cheaper tequila – also known as our twenties. It’s a specific limbo between being a teenager and a Proper Adul...

  • Dangerously Funny synopsis, comments

    Dangerously Funny

    David Bianculli

    An unprecedented behindthescenes look at the rise and fall of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour the provocative, politically charged program that shocked the censors, outraged the...

  • The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo synopsis, comments

    The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo

    Amy Schumer

    #1 New York Times Bestseller "Amy Schumer's book will make you love her even more. For a comedian of unbridled (and generally hilarious) causticity, Schumer has written a probing, ...

  • Silver Screen Fiend synopsis, comments

    Silver Screen Fiend

    Patton Oswalt

    The instant New York Times bestseller from author, comedian and actor Patton Oswalt, a “heartfelt and hilarious” (USA TODAY) memoir about coming of age as a performer during the la...

  • Sicker in the Head synopsis, comments

    Sicker in the Head

    Judd Apatow

    NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER An allnew collection of honest, hilarious, and enlightening conversations with some of the most exciting names in comedyfrom lifelong comedy nerd Ju...

  • Yes, My Accent Is Real synopsis, comments

    Yes, My Accent Is Real

    Kunal Nayyar

    In the spirit of Mindy Kaling’s bestseller Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? or Judd Apatow’s Sick in the Head, a collection of humorous, autobiographical essays from Kunal Nayya...

  • Confessions of a Tinderella synopsis, comments

    Confessions of a Tinderella

    Rosy Edwards

    The laughoutloud true story of one girl's experience of life on Tinder.Rosy Edwards is the epitome of a contradictory twentysomething year old. She’s frugal when it comes to food s...

  • Mindy Kaling synopsis, comments

    Mindy Kaling

    Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara

    In this book from the critically acclaimed, multimillioncopy bestselling Little People, BIG DREAMS series, discover the life of Mindy Kaling, the actor, writer, producer, and direc...

  • Trust No Aunty synopsis, comments

    Trust No Aunty

    Maria Qamar

    Based on her popular Instagram @Hatecopy and her experience in a South Asian immigrant family, artist Maria Qamar has created a humorous, illustrated “survival guide” to deal with ...

  • We Are Never Meeting in Real Life. synopsis, comments

    We Are Never Meeting in Real Life.

    Samantha Irby

    NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER This essay collection from the “bitches gotta eat” blogger, writer on Hulu’s Shrill and HBO's And Just Like That, and “one of our country’s most fierce a...

  • Meaty synopsis, comments

    Meaty

    Samantha Irby

    The smart, edgy, hilarious, and unabashedly raunchy New York Times bestselling author explodes onto the printed page in her uproarious first collection of essays. "Whether she...

  • Everyone You Hate Is Going to Die synopsis, comments

    Everyone You Hate Is Going to Die

    Daniel Sloss

    One of this generation's hottest and boldest young comedians presents a transgressive and hilarious analysis of all of our dysfunctional relationships, and attempts to point us in ...

  • Stealing the Show synopsis, comments

    Stealing the Show

    Joy Press

    From a leading cultural journalist, the definitive cultural history of female showrunnersincluding exclusive interviews with such influential figures as Shonda Rhimes, Amy ShermanP...

  • Scrappy Little Nobody synopsis, comments

    Scrappy Little Nobody

    Anna Kendrick

    The New York Times bestselling collection of humorous autobiographical essays by the Academy Award nominated actress and star of Up in the Air and Pitch Perfect.Even before she mad...

  • The Complete Plays synopsis, comments

    The Complete Plays

    Christopher Marlowe

    Marlowe's seven plays dramatise the fatal lure of potent forces, whether religious, occult or erotic. In the victories of Tamburlaine, Faustus's encounters with the demonic, the i...

  • Nina is Not OK synopsis, comments

    Nina is Not OK

    Shaparak Khorsandi

    Nina does not have a drinking problem. She likes a drink, sure. But what 17yearold doesn’t? Nina’s mum isn’t so sure. But she’s busy with her new husband and five year old Katie. A...

  • One More Thing synopsis, comments

    One More Thing

    B. J. Novak

    New York Times Bestseller A startlingly original debut from the actor, writer, director, and executive producer hailed as “a gifted observer of the human condition and a very...

  • Normally, This Would be Cause for Concern synopsis, comments

    Normally, This Would be Cause for Concern

    Danielle Fishel

    A warm and witty memoir by Danielle Fishel“a talented actor who has always led with her heart” (Ben Savage)the beloved star of the ’90s sitcom Boy Meets World and its hilarious new...