Vera Mindy Chokalingam, known popularly as Mindy Kaling, is best known to many as Kelly Kapoor from the comedy series The Office or as Mindy Lahiri from The Mindy Project; two immensely popular shows for which she also served as a writer, executive producer and the occasional director. Born to Indian parents in Massachusetts, Kaling started out in showbiz as an intern on Late Night with Conan O'Brien in the 90s, after graduating with a degree in playwriting from Dartmouth College.
Following more than a decade as a stand-up comedian, playwright and theatre artist, she got her big break when she joined the American remake of Ricky Gervais' The Office as a cast member and writer. In the course of the show's highly acclaimed eight-season run, Kaling proved her comic flair both as an actress and screenwriter, and even ventured into production and direction. In 2012, Kaling created, produced, wrote and starred in the romantic comedy series The Mindy Project, which won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Most Exciting New Series that year. The show, which ran for five seasons, was generally well-received and received several accolades during its heydays, including a Satellite Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series for Kaling.
Besides her work in television, the actress has also appeared in over a dozen movies. Notable among these are the sex comedy The 40 Year-Old Virgin (2005), the fantasy adventure comedy Night at the Museum 2 (2009) and the disaster comedy This is the End (2013). Among Kaling's work as a voice actor are the movies Despicable Me (2010), Wreck-It Ralph (2012) and Inside Out (2015). Other significant film credits in recent times include A Wrinkle In Time and the heist comedy Ocean's 8.