Over the weekend, Sunil made his debut as the Kwik-E-Mart owner in a special Halloween episode of The Simpsons, almost a decade since the character was last heard speaking.
Prior to that, Apu had been at the centre of controversy and debate over whether the voice performance by cast member Hank Azaria, who is white and American, played up to harmful stereotypes about Indian people.
Speaking to Variety after his first episode aired, Sunil told Variety: “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.
“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? Could they bring him back in a way that acknowledged and apologised for past mistakes? 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?’.”
“Whether the producers knew it or not, I was prepared to walk away,” he continued, sharing that he’s turned down work “multiple times” that would have required him to play a stereotypical Indian character that was “the butt of the joke”.
Albert L. Ortega via Getty Images
He then shared: “My callback was the first of many times that no one at The Simpsons let me down. I told casting that I’d only consider an offer if I could meet showrunner Matt Selman and co-executive producer Cesar Mazariegos, both of whom gladly did so.
“It was the beginning of a deeply collaborative experience that I hope is equally satisfying for longtime fans of The Simpsons and for other South Asian kids who, like me, stopped watching at some point along the way.”
Meanwhile, in an Instagram post, Sunil said: “Bringing Apu back feels like a reclamation. It truly IS his homecoming.”
In January 2020, Hank Azaria made it clear that he would no longer be voicing Apu, explaining at the time: “We all made the decision together. We all agreed on it. We all feel like it’s the right thing and [feel] good about it.”
Months later, it was announced that a number of Simpsons characters – including Dr Julius Hibbert and Moe’s regular Carl Carlson – were being recast, so that the voice actors who played them were the same race as the Springfield residents they were playing.
However, it would be another six years before Apu’s voice was heard again, with his wife Manjula now also being played by The Morning Show star Janina Gavankar.
Janina enthused: “After 22 years of friendship, I know Sunil is the perfect person to bring Apu home.”
