Actor Kal Penn shares scripts revealing Indian stereotypes in Hollywood

Actor Kal Penn has shared audition scripts to highlight the stereotypes he thinks are faced by Indian actors in Hollywood.

He tweeted examples from his early career which included roles in well-known shows like Sabrina The Teenage Witch and King of Queens.

He made the point that Asian names were often the butt of the joke.

Kal Penn is best known for roles in How I Met Your Mother and Harold & Kumar Get The Munchies, which didn't feature.

He said that lots of Indian characters in TV scripts are not named at all.

"In this audition for Smart Guy, they didn't give the character a name," he wrote.

In this case, he added that the name was later revealed as Ravi Tulu Singh Shankar Ramanji, which became another character's punchline.

"I'll just go with Ravi. It's a small paper," was the response to Kal's line.

The same happened when he auditioned for King of Queens, a US TV show which ran for nine years from 1998 to 2007.

"I used to love that show until I got to audition for it," Kal said.

Kal also recalled several experiences where he was asked for a stronger Indian accent, which he said meant casting directors "wanted Apu", the Simpsons character.

"They were awful," he added.

"There are too many in this stack to tweet. I'll be here all day," he concluded.

And when a young actor asked Kal for advice on how he could help change the situation in Hollywood, he replied simply: "Write."

Kal Penn most recently starred in critically acclaimed Kiefer Sutherland TV drama Designated Survivor.

He also worked as associate director in the White House office of public engagement during Barack Obama's time as president.

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