Desi creators in US culture continue to work within—and against—the white gaze, which divides them into sexless sidekicks or threatening terrorists. Two comedians who have defied these stereotypes and built their own expressions of Desi masculinity are Aziz Ansari and Hasan Minhaj. Ansari’s comedic persona is informed by his work in film and television, while Minhaj’s comedic persona is situated within his work on political news satire. While Ansari is known for his “funny cute” persona, Minhaj portrays himself as a steady family man. Despite these contrasting groundings in comedy, they are comparable in their shared use of the stand-up genre to articulate their experiences as South Asian Americans. In this article we explore the ways in which Minhaj and Ansari use humor to construct their identities as second-generation South Asian Americans—separating themselves from orientalizing white narratives and the model minority myth that have long stereotyped South Asians in American entertainment media. We contend that they maintain cultural citizenship by articulating a new Desi masculinity that stands the test of controversy, ultimately granting them redemption by mainstream American audiences.
Articles by Madhavi Reddi
Madhavi Reddi is Assistant Professor in the Dept. of Journalism and Communication at Lehigh University. Her scholarship focuses on the interplay between media, identity, and citizenship in the digital age—particularly in the context of South Asian American media representation. Her work has appeared in journals such as New Media and Society, Communication, Culture and Critique, and the International Journal of Communication.