{"id":2206917,"date":"2026-10-19T13:22:24","date_gmt":"2026-10-19T10:22:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2206917"},"modified":"2026-10-19T13:22:24","modified_gmt":"2026-10-19T10:22:24","slug":"the-simpsons-apu-returns-with-new-voice-after-race-row","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2206917","title":{"rendered":"The Simpsons: Apu returns with new voice after race row"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The Simpsons character Apu has returned to the show voiced by a new actor, after almost a decade away amid accusations of racial stereotypes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Apu Nahasapeemapetilon – to give the much-loved shopkeeper his full name – re-appeared in Sunday’s episode titled The Revengening, voiced by India-born US-raised actor Sunil Malhotra.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The character has been seen but not heard around Springfield since the October 2017 episode The Serfsons, and his big return to action had reportedly been a closely guarded secret.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Malhotra said in a statement posted on Instagram that it feels like a reclamation. “It truly is his homecoming,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The character, who has been part of the long-running US animation series since 1990, was previously voiced by a white actor, Hank Azaria, putting on a heavy Indian accent.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Indian-American comic Hari Kondabolu made a documentary in 2017, titled the Problem With Apu, saying the character – a South Asian convenience store clerk – was founded on racial stereotypes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The following year, an episode of the long-running US cartoon addressed the controversy surrounding the Indian character for the first time, making a nod to the accusations, but some viewers found it insufficient.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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  • The Simpsons’ Apu: ‘A stereotype hiding in plain sight’<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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    Others defended the show and said all its characters were stereotypes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    Azaria first announced he was stepping down from the role in 2020, and he later told Dax Shepherd’s Armchair Expert podcast: “Part of me feels like I need to go around to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologise.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    ‘Deeply collaborative experience’<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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    Sunil Malhotra has featured in Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi and The Legend of Vox Machina<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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    Speaking to Variety ahead of the weekend’s latest episode, Azaria’s replacement Malhotra explained: “When my agent called me about a Simpsons audition, I knew exactly what role it was for, and the idea actually made my stomach sink.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “But admittedly, part of me was also curious. It had been eight years since Apu had spoken on the show, and it got me thinking: Did the writers’ room look different now?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    The Grey’s Anatomy and The Legend of Korra actor continued: “Could they bring him back in a way that acknowledged and apologised for past mistakes?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “Could I make the character my own, and reclaim him in some way? And could they achieve all of that in an unmistakably Simpsons way that didn’t disappoint fans?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    After years of Apu having become a mere background character, Malhotra said he spoke with showrunner Matt Selman and co-executive producer Cesar Mazariegos about how they could make the returning fans’ favourite more culturally appropriate for 2026.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    “It was the beginning of a deeply collaborative experience that I hope is equally satisfying for long-time fans of The Simpsons and for other South Asian kids who, like me, stopped watching at some point along the way.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    Apu’s wife, Manjula, will now be voiced Janina Gavankar, who previously appeared in Apple TV’s The Morning Show and she takes over from Jan Hooks and Tress MacNeille.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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