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Actress Mindy Kaling jokes about 'outing' Kamala Harris as Indian at Night 3 of the DNC

 Actress Mindy Kaling speaks at Night 3 of the DNC in Chicago.
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Actress Mindy Kaling speaks at Night 3 of the DNC in Chicago.

The NPR Network will be reporting live from Chicago throughout the week bringing you the latest on the Democratic National Convention.


Actress Mindy Kaling jokes about 'outing' Kamala Harris as Indian Actress Mindy Kaling addressed the Democratic National Convention, sharing anecdotes of her and Vice President Harris’ similar Indian backgrounds.

“I am an incredibly famous Gen Z actress who you might recognize from The Office, The Mindy Project, or as the woman who courageously outed Kamala Harris as Indian in an Instagram cooking video,” Kaling joked.

Kaling recalled that one of the first times she met Harris was years ago during the cooking demonstration, when Harris was a U.S. senator for California.

“We immediately hit it off. We talked about the love that we have for our moms, who had both passed away from cancer,” Kaling said. “Both of our mothers were immigrants from India who came to America and committed their lives to serving others.”

Kaling’s mother was an OB-GYN and Harris’ mother was a scientist in the field of cancer research.

Kaling said she felt immediately that Harris’ mother had passed on the same commitment to humanity and serving others that had guided her life.

“But the thing I remember the most about the vice president,” Kaling said, “is that Kamala Harris can cook. Guys, she was so much better than me. But she also knew that my family was watching, so as she gently corrected my sloppy dosa making, she was complimenting me every step of the way.”

Kaling’s remarks come as former President Donald Trump has made racial attacks against Harris, claiming that she “happened to turn Black” within the past few years. Harris attended Howard University, a historically Black university, and has talked extensively about her identity as a Black and South Asian woman.

Trump and his allies have also repeatedly mispronounced Harris’ given name, Kamala, which means “lotus flower” in Sanskrit.

Watch Kaling's full remarks:


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Alana Wise
Alana Wise is a politics reporter on the Washington desk at NPR.