Politics

Watch: Cambridge native Mindy Kaling hosts night three of the DNC

Kaling joked about “outing” Vice President Kamala Harris as Indian.

Andrew Harnik / Getty Images

August 22, 2024

1 minute to read

You probably know Cambridge native Mindy Kaling from her role as Kelly Kapoor in “The Office” or as Disgust in “Inside Out,” but last night, she played a new role, hosting night three of the 2024 Democratic National Convention.

Kaling joked that she “courageously outed” Vice President Kamala Harris as Indian in an Instagram cooking video, when she invited Harris to her home in 2019 to cook dosas, a South Indian dish.

“Kamala Harris can cook,” Kaling said. “She was so much better than me.”

As Harris “gently corrected” Kaling’s “sloppy dosa making,” Kaling said Harris complimented her “every step of the way.”

“She had no desire to be seen as better than anyone else,” Kaling said. “It is that warmth, that generosity of spirit, that I know she will bring to the White House as our next president.”

Kaling also told the story of one of the first times she met Harris, recalling a discussion of their two mothers, who had both passed away from cancer.

“We talked about the love we have for our moms,” she said. “Both of our mothers were immigrants from India who came to America and committed their lives to serving others.”

Kaling’s mother, Swati, became an OBGYN and Harris’s mother, Shyamala, became a scientist with a PhD.

“After speaking to Kamala, it was clear to me that Shyamala had passed down the same optimism and fearlessness to her daughter.” Kaling said.