Kaling Says Mom Warned Her Not to Be Like Chris Farley

What was said

"I remember my mom being very worried and being like, because I was overweight, and I think she was like, and so she was like, I don't, She once sat me down when I was, like, 14, and was like, 'I don't want you to be like that.' Oh, that's really interesting. Right? Like, 'Don't feel like you need to be a clown.' And I think she thought that, like, 'Okay, my overweight daughter, who is not fitting into the mainstream of culture, will feel like the way to be accepted and funny is to be like Chris Farley.'"

Mindy Kaling revealed that her mother, concerned about her daughter's weight as a teenager, explicitly warned her against following Chris Farley's path in comedy. Kaling explained her mother worried she would resort to physical comedy and clowning as an overweight girl trying to fit in during the 1990s. The revelation highlights the different standards young women faced entering comedy compared to men.