The problem with Apu that The Simpsons just can’t seem to understand
With its 636th episode this past weekend, The Simpsons became the longest-running scripted primetime television series in history. But just weeks before it celebrated this impressive achievement, the show found itself in hot water for continuing to feature a character riddled with stereotypes relating to race. From his profession (owner of the KwikE-Mart) to his accent (he’s voiced by white actor Hank Azaria), Apu represents an extremely racialized portrayal of a South Asian.
In November, comedian Hari Kondabolu addressed the issue with his documentary The Problem With Apu, launching a long overdue conversation on the character and just why it has been offensive to generations of South Asians.
Instead of acknowledging the uproar or acting on the criticism that the documentary prompted, The Simpsons dismissed the issue rather callously last month with a scene poking fun at it. During the 15th episode of the 29th season, Lisa discovers that one of Marge’s favourite books from her childhood is full of racist caricatures. In response, Lisa says, “Something that started decades ago and was applauded and inoffensive is now politically incorrect. What can you do?” The shot then pans over to a picture of Apu on her nightstand with the phrase “Don’t have a cow” scrawled on it.
Last week, during an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Azaria addressed the criticism more elegantly, saying he had watched the documentary and hopes the show will respond better in future. Azaria said,
“My eyes have been opened and I think the most important thing is we have to listen to South
Asian people, Indian people in this country when they talk about what they feel and how they think about this character and what their American experience of it has been. As you know, in television terms ‘ listening to voices’ means inclusion in the writers’ room. I really want to see Indian, South Asian writers in the room, not in a token way, but genuinely informing whatever new direction the character takes, including how it is voiced or not voiced.” He even offered to “step aside or help transition (Apu) into something new,” because change “not only makes sense, but it just seems like the right thing to do to me.”
eWhen it comes to th show’s actual creatives, the response hasn’t been quite so understanding. After Kondabolu’s documentary aired, showrunner Al Jean went on a Twitter storm, retweeting all those who felt the comedian was being overemotional. When he was criticized for his own reaction, Jean eventually tweeted that the show would “try to find an answer that is popular and more important.”
This week, in an interview with USA Today, creator Matt Groening finally spoke about the conflict, saying, “I’m proud of what we do on the show. And I think it’s a time in our culture where people love to pretend they’re offended.”
However, in an interview with The Guardian about the documentary, Kondabolu recalled, “When you sit in high school, which is, I think for most of us, the lowest point in our lives, you realize (Apu) was a tool for kids to go after you. And this was perfect, right? A caricature with this ridiculous accent that nobody has. And even though I grew up in Queens, I still had the same vulnerabilities, and my parents were accented. I thought: how are they going to view my parents, how are they going to view me?”
It’s a sentiment echoed by the wide selection of actors Kondabolu interviewed, including Aziz Ansari, Mindy Kaling, Kal Penn, Aparna Nancherla and Hasan Minhaj, who discussed growing up with the racialized character of Apu, and having the words “thank you, come again” hurled at them in a cartoonish Indian accent throughout their schooling.
Asked whether the series will ever attempt to address the problem with Apu again, Groening concluded, “We’ll let the show speak for itself.”