Aasif Mandvi Biography

Fast Facts

• Was nominated for three awards for "Margin Call:" a Phoenix Film Critics Society Award and a Gotham Award in 2011 and a Central Ohio Film Critics Association Award in 2012
• Won the OBIE Award for his one-man show "Sakina's Restaurant․"
• Graduated from the University of South Florida with a degree in Theatre in 1989
• Began acting at the age of 7 as a pixie in a school play
• For his first audition, a commercial featuring a snake charmer, he learned an Indian accent by watching Peter Sellers in "The Party" and the character Apu in "The Simpsons․"
• Quote: "I've always said I'm the worst representative of Muslim Americans that's ever existed, because I've been inside more bars than mosques․ But․․․there are very few people representing the moderate American Muslim voice on television․"
• Best known as a correspondent on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart․"
• Has appeared in numerous stage productions, including "Oklahoma!," "Suburbia," and "Speak Truth to Power․"
• He auditioned for "The Daily Show" in 2006 and got the job immediately afterwards, appearing on the show that same night