With the year drawing closer to a close, it's about that time when our leading cultural barometers dole out their annual "best of" awards. Beating everyone to the punch is Glamour magazine, who just named Mindy Kaling one of their "Women of The Year."
According to the mag, Kaling has assumed the role of BFF for millions of women, whether they're fans of her hit show The Mindy Project, or her countless Twitter disciples. She's the kind of friend you'd "take shopping, talk politics with, and call on for backup in minor bar fights," Glamour writes.
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The question is, does Kaling feel up to the task? Having millions of best friends could be kind of fun, but that's a lot of weddings to plan, birthday dinner checks to split, and shoulders lean on. "I love it, but it scares me a little bit, that responsibility," Kaling says of the title's lofty implications. "I want to be a good best friend."
Kaling has had a banner year. After a rocky start, The Mindy Project has finally found its footing, to become not only one of the funniest shows on television, but also one with a strong feminist point of view. "I am a feminist," Kaling said. "So if that leaks into every episode of the show, I (a) like it and (b) don’t do it on a conscious level. That’s just our standpoint.”
Meanwhile, her second book, Why Not Me? is due out early next year; her first, 2011's Why Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? was a New York Times bestseller. According to Kaling, the title refers to a mantra she repeats to herself when pursuing a goal, like say, landing her own sitcom. "I thought, I have the ammunition, the education...What's keeping me from actually doing this?" She added: "Only that I was scared of failing. I think that's what keeps a lot of women from doing things."
But, perhaps no one can sum up what makes Kaling so unique, like one of her close, personal friends. Take it away, Miss Dunham:
"Her comic voice is as singular as her speaking one. An intellectual who is also a pop-culture queen, she can move between Audrey Hepburn poise and raucous relatability.”
We couldn't have said it better ourselves. (Glamour)