Mindy Kaling on The Mindy Project: "I Wanted Her to Be Really Realistic and Authentic"

On October 17, 2012, Fox held a press call with Mindy Kaling ahead of The Mindy Project's Halloween episode. Kaling — who created the show, stars in it, writes for it, and executive produces it — spoke about the character she built, the double standard for female leads in comedy, an Anne Hathaway film she was developing, and what a typical day looks like when you're running a show while also being in it.

So many of the female characters I see on TV are just kind of put upon and kind of boring. Every woman I know can be occasionally selfish, and can still be heroic and funny. I'm just trying to make her interesting and nuanced.

The character — and the double standard

A reporter asked Kaling whether she was conscious of the risk of making Dr. Lahiri occasionally obnoxious — something male sitcom leads have always been able to do freely. Her answer was direct: "Curb Your Enthusiasm, which is one of my favorite shows — Larry David often acts in ways that some people might characterize as obnoxious, but he's also doing what most people who like the show are like, 'Oh I wish I could do that but I never can.' My goal with the character is that she is doing stuff that we all — women watching and guys watching — wish they could do but just can't. When a man does it I don't know if you call it obnoxious; when a woman does it maybe it's rarer, so that's what it seems like." She pushed back on the premise directly: "So many of the female characters I see on TV are just kind of put upon and kind of boring. They're so worried about viewers not being able to handle a woman who is occasionally selfish — but every woman I know can be occasionally selfish, and can still be heroic and funny. I'm just trying to make her interesting and nuanced."

The Anne Hathaway film

Kaling confirmed she was developing a film with Anne Hathaway in mind for the lead: "I've been a fan of Anne Hathaway since as long as I can remember. She's been in such different kinds of movies. What I like about her is that this part — which I had her in mind for a while — she's not playing a gorgeous heroine. The character is kind of pretty unglamorous, a little dowdy, and a little down on herself, and I just like that she's into that. One of my favorite movies is Bridget Jones's Diary because Renée Zellweger just totally goes for it in terms of being imperfect and is so funny and so sort of down to do that kind of thing. I like that she can play Catwoman, but is also willing to play this more dreary part. She's not looking like a sexy leading lady in this movie. I think that's cool."

A typical day — 5:30 a.m. to midnight

Asked to describe a day in the life of running The Mindy Project, Kaling walked through it: "I wake up between 5:30 and 6:00 in the morning. I walk like a zombie to my shower. I have so much family and friends on the East Coast so they all have texts from them. Drive to work, listen to some Justin Timberlake in the car on the way there. Hair and makeup. I check in with the writers — they get in around 10:00 a.m. and I've been acting for a couple of hours and am always excited to see them because when I first show up it's like a ghost town. I wrap usually around five or six at night and in between writing stuff I will go check in with the writers and then I stay until between ten and midnight hanging out with them. It sounds like a long schedule but because it's my show and because I'm working with essentially all my best friends it feels like a very grueling vacation, if that makes sense." On the secret to managing all of it: "I constantly have to shift focus, which is really good in keeping me from fixating on things. I also every morning drink a blend of vegetables and fruits that's a disgusting green potion that I believe keeps me alive. That's my secret trick."

The Halloween episode — and where the character is going

Kaling teased the October 23rd Halloween episode, which she described as one of her favorites of the season: "I wear a series of costumes — I did about five or six costume changes. The premise is that I'm going on a Halloween date with the character Josh. The Halloween costume is stressing my character out a lot, which is very true of me, myself. They're not sexy hot girl costumes. They're pretty funny, I think." She also confirmed Bill Hader returns in the episode. On the longer arc of the character, she was thoughtful: "I always think a good hero or heroine in a show will change and evolve. My character isn't 19; she's 31 or 32 in the pilot. A part of loving romantic comedies is a little bit childish — the character definitely has arrested development. I would hope, if we're lucky enough to go for many years, to see her shed some of that adoration for romantic comedies and kind of embrace her own life a little." The Mindy Project airs Tuesday nights at 9:30 on Fox.

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