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Kal Penn: “Nobody should have to live in fear”

Feb 05, 2025 05:29 PM IST

American actor and former White House staff member Kalpen Suresh Modi — better known as Kal Penn — spoke at the Jaipur Literature Festival.

What do you love about comedy as a form of entertainment?

Kal Penn at the Jaipur Literature Festival 2025 (Courtesy JLF) PREMIUM
Kal Penn at the Jaipur Literature Festival 2025 (Courtesy JLF)

I just love comedy for what it does. I don’t mean to be hokey but, in a world as polarized as ours, we still have some sacred things like food, sports and comedy that we can enjoy together. My benchmark for whether I did well is if somebody can laugh at something that I said even if we disagree on everything else. Comedy can bring people together.

What is the hardest thing about making people laugh?

Well, comedy is subjective, right? The way I do it is just trial and error. For instance, I am here to talk about my book You Can’t Be Serious at a very serious literature festival, so I was wondering whether some of my dumber jokes would really make people laugh.

Some of the types of comedy that I gravitate towards are the ones that are not based in making fun of and putting somebody else down. But it is easier to do that sometimes, and it also makes us feel good to crack a joke at the expense of somebody who has wronged us.

My comedic influences right now cover a wide range from Vir Das to Shane Gillis, from Ali Wong to Amit Tandon. They are all totally different in terms of their approaches to comedy.

With Irrfan Khan in The Namesake (Film still)
With Irrfan Khan in The Namesake (Film still)

In India, you are probably best known for playing Gogol Ganguli in Mira Nair’s film The Namesake, based on Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel. What are your fondest memories of the late Irrfan Khan, who played your father Ashoke in the movie?

He was a very funny guy. There was this crazy scene where, after his character passes away in the film, my character goes to identify his body. We were shooting inside a real morgue in a real hospital. He had to lie on the gurney that gets pulled out in the scene. And I was supposed to say to the coroner, “What happened to his glasses?” It was in the original script but I don’t remember if it actually made it to the movie. Without opening his eyes, Irrfan said, “They are in my pocket.” I was like, “Oh shit!” His character was supposed to be dead. He wasn’t supposed to talk. It was crazy. He did things like that. I remember him very warmly. He continues to be revered as an actor, and for good reasons.

How do you look back at the fact that Zohran Mamdani — the democratic socialist politician who is running for New York City mayor in the 2025 elections — was responsible for getting you the role of Gogol when he was just a teenager?

Zohran and his best friend at the time — Sam — were both responsible for Mira letting me audition for The Namesake. I had been a big fan of Jhumpa’s writing since John Cho who plays Harold in the Harold and Kumar movies, introduced me to her writing. We had read The Interpreter of Maladies together. When The Namesake came out, John and I read it together, and then decided that we should try to get the rights to turn it into a film. We found out that Mira had already got the rights. And then I began this really aggressive campaign to try to audition for the role of Gogol. My manager, my agent, in fact nobody could get me an audition for Mira’s film, so I wrote her a letter.

Basically, the letter was like, “Look, your film Mississippi Masala, was one of the catalysts that went into how I became an actor. I just have to audition for this movie. This is a once in a lifetime movie for an actor like me, you have to let me audition.” That was a bold letter for any actor to send. I thought it was never going to work but I really had to make that kind of last-ditch effort. She called me and said, “We would love to audition you.”

When I walked in, she said, “There are two things that you should know. One, the role has already been cast. And number two, the reason you’re here is because my 14-year-old son, Zohran, is a huge Harold and Kumar fan, and for the last six months, he’s been telling me, Mom, you have to audition Kal Penn for Gogol. He showed me clips from Harold and Kumar, which only reinforced my notion that you were absolutely wrong to play Gogol.”

Thanks to Zohran and Sam’s advocacy, I got my foot in the door. Things didn’t work out with the original cast, so I had the chance to play Gogol. I loved working with Mira on that film.

Though we certainly don’t see eye to eye on everything political, I am very excited that Zohran is running to be mayor of New York City. He is currently a representative in the New York State Assembly. He has a really good track record of working with conservatives, moderates and liberals, at putting things like free bussing together. The way he did it was really smart because it saves the city money and it also increases opportunities for families and makes public transit safer, which is a big issue in New York right now. He has all these smart creative solutions that I would love for more people to know about even if they don’t seem sexy or sound clickbaity. But I might be biased. I’ve known him since he was 14.

384pp, ₹446; Simon & Schuster
384pp, ₹446; Simon & Schuster

You’ve been keen on getting an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card, which foreign nationals of Indian origin are eligible for. Are you looking for work in India?

Yes, I would love to do everything from shooting digital shorts to stand-up comedy to working in a film. You need to get a work permit if you don’t have an OCI card. I love visiting India because I have family in Mumbai and Ahmedabad. This doesn’t feel like reconnecting with my roots; I never lost touch. I grew up being close to my grandparents.

Which Indian filmmakers are you most excited to work with?

If I had a choice, I would go with friends first. I would love to work with Zoya Akhtar. She is a friend, and I loved having her on The Daily Show when I was hosting that last year. It would be amazing to work with her. Also, who doesn’t love a big-budget Karan Johar movie? But then I’ve also loved some of the OTT content coming out of India, like Sacred Games directed by Vikramaditya Motwane, Anurag Kashyap and Neeraj Ghaywan. That is such a different form of storytelling. I also love a lot of Guneet Monga’s work. I had the chance to work with her a few years ago on an independent film called The Ashram.

In your memoir, you write so beautifully about your relationship with your partner Josh. You must be aware that India has decriminalized homosexuality but there is no legal recognition yet for same-sex marriages. As an out and proud gay man, why do you think that marriage equality is an important issue to rally around?

I am all for codifying relationships between two loving, consenting adults. There is no greater joy for families and communities. Why should people be treated any differently just based on who they love? It makes no sense, morally speaking, especially because India is one of the most ancient, incredible, historically secular societies that has a beautiful track record of same-sex relationships and depictions that go back several thousands of years. And there are economic reasons, of course. Why are gay people not getting the tax benefits that they deserve? Are they not contributing to the country economically? I am hopeful that, at some point, India will catch up with other countries that do allow same-sex marriage.

READ MORE: Review: You Can’t Be Serious by Kal Penn

Until a decade ago, the United States used to have a Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT) policy, prohibiting openly gay and lesbian people from serving in the military. Do you think that this policy might come back with Donald Trump as President?

I have no crystal ball but I wouldn’t rule out any additional regressive measures by the current administration. This possibility is disturbing, and communities are concerned because Trump rescinded trans service members from being able to serve. A lot of Republicans are libertarian, so one hopes that they would live and let live. But I do not work in the space of policy now, so I don’t have additional insights. I hope that even people who aren’t thinking about the moral side of inclusion will see that inclusive policies are good for us as a diverse country with a global marketplace. Not being inclusive hurts businesses.

The Trump administration is scary for immigrants and refugees. As someone who worked in the White House under the Barack Obama administration, later ran a fundraiser for Syrian refugees and donated money to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, how do you see your role as a public figure?

There is a great backlash against immigrants, both documented and undocumented, and people obviously have strong feelings about this issue. I appreciate how you have framed this question because we are a nation of immigrants. It is patriotic to recognize the contributions of immigrants. We love our country. Last year, I did a fundraiser for an organization called Make the Road New York, which works with immigrants on everything from healthcare to housing to job stability and language access. All these things need support. We have checks and balances to make sure that people are coming to the US in the right way. If they aren’t, there are ways to move forward together. Nobody should have to live in fear.

Chintan Girish Modi is a Mumbai-based journalist who writes about books, art and culture. He can be reached @chintanwriting on Instagram and X.

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