Ankit Shukla: The Problem with Apu
KEY MOMENTS
0:00 – Intro and sponsors
0:49 – Ankit Shukla joins to talk Apu and The Simpsons
1:23 – Growing up in Nevada and a career in travel nursing
4:05 – Why Apu was more than a goofy accent
7:38 – Hari Kondabolu's The Problem with Apu
8:28 – The 9/11 scene and convenience store attacks
11:13 – Blocked on Twitter, so he wrote a book
14:31 – Missing voices: immigrant convenience store owners
16:47 – Did Apu inspire Indian American entertainers?
19:11 – Immigrant parents, doctors, and career expectations
20:33 – His father's story mirrors Apu's
24:02 – Every immigrant group faces adversity
26:09 – Yoga, Indian food, and a Halloween regret
30:52 – Racism between minority groups
35:02 – Hank Azaria and which accents count as cool
39:04 – Lou's father and his Spanish Harlem butcher shop
40:36 – A documentary on Apu with Mobifi TV
42:00 – Family in India and the COVID-19 surge
44:18 – Indian phone scammers
45:22 – Ghostwriting and advice on writing a book
50:14 – Wrap-up: easier to tear down than to create
ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Ankit Shukla, author of I Love You, APU, joins Lou to talk about The Problem with Apu, why Apu was more than a goofy accent, growing up immigrant-style, and inter-minority racism.
We also get into growing up in Nevada and travel nursing, Hari Kondabolu's documentary, the 9/11 scene and convenience store attacks, getting blocked on Twitter so he wrote a book, immigrant convenience store owners, immigrant parents and career expectations, his father's story mirroring Apu's, a Halloween regret, Hank Azaria and which accents count as cool, Lou's father's Spanish Harlem butcher shop, Indian phone scammers, and advice on writing a book.