Hasan Minhaj

Hasan Minhaj
Minhaj in 2013
Born (1985-09-23) September 23, 1985
Davis, California, U.S.
Medium
  • Stand-up
  • television
  • film
Alma mater University of California, Davis
Years active 2008–present
Genres
Subject(s)
Spouse
Beena Patel (m. 2015)
Children 1
Website HasanMinhaj.com

Hasan Minhaj (/həˈsɑːn mɪˈnɑːʒ/; born September 23, 1985) is an American comedian and actor who was a senior correspondent on The Daily Show from 2014–18. Minhaj was the featured speaker at the 2017 White House Correspondents' Dinner.[1] His first stand-up comedy special, Homecoming King, debuted on Netflix on May 23, 2017, and received positive reviews from critics[2] and a Peabody Award in 2018.[3] Minhaj left The Daily Show in August 2018 to shift focus to host a weekly comedy show, Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj, which debuts on Netflix on October 28, 2018.[4]

Early life and family

Minhaj comes from a Muslim family originally from Aligarh and Seohara, Bijnor Uttar Pradesh, India. His parents, Najme and Seema (née Usmani), immigrated to Davis, California, where Minhaj was born and raised.[5][6][7] After his birth, he and his father, a chemist, remained in the United States. His mother returned to India for eight years to complete medical school,[8] visiting the U.S. after three years to give birth to his sister in 1989. Hasan did not know he had a sister until he was eight when his mother and sister returned permanently from India.[9] In addition to English, he is fluent in Hindi[10][11] His sister, Ayesha Minhaj, is an attorney in the San Francisco Bay Area.[12]

Career

Minhaj attended the University of California, Davis, where he majored in political science.[13] There, he became interested in comedy after seeing Chris Rock's Never Scared, the first stand-up special he watched. He began traveling to San Francisco to perform.[7] In 2008, he won Wild 94.9's "Best Comic Standing" competition, which resulted in his working as an opening act for Katt Williams, Pablo Francisco, and Gabriel Iglesias. He also worked part-time for the website Ning, an experience he used to write comedy.[13] Minhaj lists Kevin Shea, W. Kamau Bell, and Arj Barker as inspirations.[7]

In 2009, Minhaj moved to Los Angeles to perform on NBC's Stand-up for Diversity, on which he was a finalist.[13][7] In 2011, he was recurring on the TV sitcom State of Georgia and starred in various roles on the MTV hidden camera show Disaster Date. Through posting on YouTube, he was cast on Failosophy.[7] In 2013, Minhaj appeared in guest roles on Arrested Development and Getting On.[14] He hosted Stand Up Planet in 2013 and a web series, The Truth with Hasan Minhaj, in 2014.[15] In 2014, he voiced Rabi Ray Rana in the video game Far Cry 4.

Minhaj performing in 2016

On November 19, 2014, Minhaj joined The Daily Show as a correspondent, the last one hired by then-host Jon Stewart. Minhaj was asked to come in for an audition with new material after he sent in a tape of him performing an idea for a Daily Show segment, but he initially panicked as he had no other material prepared. The Friday before Minhaj's audition, Ben Affleck and Bill Maher got into a heated exchange about Islam on Maher's show, and Minhaj used this for a new sketch he called "Batman vs. Bill Maher."[15][16]

On June 18, 2016, Minhaj performed a set as the host of the annual Radio and Television Correspondents Dinner.[17] The set gained attention for his condemnation of the United States Congress' inaction in passing gun control legislation.[23]

On April 29, 2017, Minhaj was the featured speaker at the 2017 White House Correspondents' Dinner, where he took on the traditional role of roasting Washington, D.C. society, national politics, current events, the current president, the Washington press corps, and the American media.[24] He criticized U.S. President Donald Trump, who was boycotting the dinner,[25] calling him the "liar in chief," and reminded the press to do their job:[1]

We are here to talk about the truth. It is 2017, and we are living in the golden age of lying. Now's the time to be a liar, and Donald Trump is liar in chief. And remember, you guys are public enemy no. 1. You are his biggest enemy. Journalists, ISIS, normal-length ties. And somehow, you're the bad guys. That's why you gotta keep your foot on the gas.

Minhaj's one-man show, Homecoming King, debuted Off-Broadway in October 2015.[8][26] The show featured a central theme of the immigrant experience in the United States today, illustrated with stories from Minhaj's life as a first-generation Indian-American Muslim. He later turned the show into his first stand-up special, Hasan Minhaj: Homecoming King, which premiered on Netflix on May 23, 2017. The special was filmed at the Mondavi Center at Minhaj's alma mater, UC Davis, in January 2017[2] and won a television Peabody Award.[27]

In March 2018, Netflix announced that Minhaj will host his own weekly on the platform.[28][29] His final Daily Show aired on August 16. The new show, entitled Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj, is set to premiere on October 28, 2018, and has received an initial order of 32 episodes. Patriot Act will explore the modern cultural and political landscape.[4]

Personal life

In January 2015, Minhaj married Beena Patel, whom he had met in college at UC Davis. Beena received a Doctor of Public Health in 2013 and since has worked with homeless patients and holds the position of Management Consultant for MedAmerica. Patel is from a Hindu family, which Minhaj discussed in his comedy special, Homecoming King.[30][31] They live in New York City.[32] On April 22, 2018, the couple welcomed their first child, a baby girl.[33]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2010 True Stories from My Crappy Childhood Himself Short film
2011 Moving Takahashi Grant Short film
2012 Indian Spider-Man Hasan Peter Patel Short film
2013 Good Son Doctor's son Short film
2017 Rough Night Joe
2018 Most Likely to Murder Amir
2018 The Spy Who Dumped Me Duffer

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2010 The Wanda Sykes Show WMZ Staffer Episode: "1.8"
2010 The Legend of Neil Lynel 2 / Lynel 2 episodes
2011 Disaster Date Himself 18 episodes
2011 State of Georgia Seth 5 episodes
2013 Arrested Development Indian Medical Student Episode: "A New Start"
2013 Getting On Raul Episode: "Nightshift"
2013 Failosophy Himself (host) 12 episodes
2014–2018 The Daily Show Himself (correspondent) 103 episodes
2017 White House Correspondents' Dinner Himself (host) TV special
2017 Hasan Minhaj: Homecoming King Himself Stand-up special
2018 Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj Himself (host) Also co-creator, writer, executive producer

Video games

Year Title Voice
2014 Far Cry 4 Rabi Ray Rana (voice)

Awards and nominations

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Busis, Hillary (April 29, 2017). "White House Correspondents' Dinner: See Hasan Minhaj's Scorching Speech". Vanity Fair. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  2. 1 2 Meslow, Scott (May 11, 2017). "Watch the Trailer for Hasan Minhaj's Terrific New Netflix Special, 'Homecoming King'". GQ. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
  3. ↑ Rathore, Reena (April 26, 2018). "Comedian Hasan Minhaj's Debut Netflix Special Lands Him His First Peabody Award". India West. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  4. 1 2 Miller, Liz Shannon (2018-08-09). "Hasan Minhaj to Make History With New Weekly Netflix Series 'Patriot Act'". IndieWire. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
  5. ↑ Egel, Ben. "Hasan Minhaj launches from Davis to the heart of a national debate". Sacramento Bee. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Hasan Minhaj, Born 09/23/1985 in California". californiabirthindex.org. Retrieved May 1, 2017.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Nakayama, Paul (September 9, 2013). "Comedian Hasan Minhaj Talks 'The Truth' and "Failosophy" (and Is Definitely Not Related to Nicki Minaj)". Audrey Magazine. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  8. 1 2 Blair, Elizabeth (October 14, 2015). "Hasan Minhaj Of 'Daily Show' On Prom, Indian Dads And White Folks at Desi Weddings". NPR. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Ayesha Minhaj, Born 06/17/1989 in California". californiabirthindex.org. Retrieved May 1, 2017.
  10. ↑ Arora, Priya (November 6, 2015). "Comedian Hasan Minhaj on 'Homecoming King' and the Power of Storytelling". India.com. Retrieved May 23, 2017.
  11. ↑ Rao, Mallika. "Hasan Minhaj Took a Job No One Wanted". Vulture. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
  12. ↑ Lyons, Joseph D. (April 13, 2017). "Who Is Ayesha Minhaj? Hasan's Sister Is An Accomplished Lawyer". Bustle. Retrieved May 25, 2017.
  13. 1 2 3 Perlman, Daniel (August 24, 2009). "Hasan Minhaj: Giving comedy the college try". LAUGHSPIN. Archived from the original on October 16, 2014. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  14. ↑ "The Daily Show adds two new correspondents". The A.V. Club. October 10, 2014. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  15. 1 2 "'Daily Show' adds Hasan Minhaj and Trevor Noah". Entertainment Weekly. October 10, 2014. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  16. ↑ Lewis, Hilary (October 16, 2015). "'Daily Show' Correspondent Hasan Minhaj Reveals Bill Maher-Ben Affleck Islam Dispute Got Him His Job". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 23, 2017.
  17. ↑ C-SPAN (June 16, 2016), Hasan Minhaj at 2016 RTCA Dinner (C-SPAN), retrieved June 21, 2016
  18. ↑ Rao, Sameer (June 17, 2016). "WATCH: Hasan Minhaj Passionately Denounces Congressional Inaction on Gun Laws". Colorlines. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
  19. ↑ Rahel Gebreyes Editor, HuffPost Video (June 17, 2016). "'Daily Show' Correspondent Hasan Minhaj Eviscerates Congress For Inaction on Guns". The Huffington Post. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Comedian Who Blasted Congress on Gun Control Tells PEOPLE Why He Has No Regrets: 'This Is What We Have Paid You To Do'". People. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
  21. ↑ Slattery, Peter (June 17, 2016). "Hasan Minhaj Tears Congress Apart Over Guns And Bigotry". The Daily Beast. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Comedian Hasan Minhaj to Congress on Guns: 'Is This What You Want Your Legacy to Be?'". NBC News. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
  23. ↑ [18][19][20][21][22]
  24. ↑ Heil, Emily (April 11, 2017). "'Daily Show' regular Hasan Minhaj will headline the White House correspondents' dinner". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved April 11, 2017.
  25. ↑ Gold, Hadas (April 11, 2017). "Will Trump be roasted at White House Correspondents' Dinner?". Politico Magazine. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  26. ↑ Gandhi, Lakshmi (October 21, 2015). "'Daily Show' correspondent Hasan Minhaj brings his childhood to the stage". Metro. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
  27. ↑ Hipes, Patrick (April 18, 2018). "'Handmaid's Tale', 'Mrs. Maisel', John Oliver & 'SNL' Among Peabody Winners". Deadline.
  28. ↑ "Netflix Orders Weekly Talk Show From 'Daily Show' Breakout Hasan Minhaj (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  29. ↑ Otterson, Joe (2018-03-01). "'Daily Show' Vet Hasan Minhaj to Host Weekly Netflix Talk Show". Variety. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  30. ↑ "The Daily Show's Hasan Minhaj Drinks His Coffee 'Construction-Worker-Style'". Grub Street. October 16, 2015. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
  31. ↑ "Instagram post by Hasan Minhaj". Instagram. January 6, 2015. Retrieved May 25, 2017.
  32. ↑ Kaufman, Joanne (December 16, 2016). "A 'Daily Show' Correspondent Adjusts to Life in New York". The New York Times. Retrieved May 25, 2017.
  33. ↑ Hasan Minhaj. Instagram. Retrieved on April 23, 2018.
  34. ↑ "Celebrating 25 Years of the Media Awards". MPAC. May 3, 2016.
  35. ↑ "Presenting our Architects of Change Honorees". Chhaya CDC.
  36. ↑ Sharma, Paloma (September 23, 2017). "Hasan Minhaj just compared Donald Trump to an Indian uncle in this brutally funny MOTY acceptance speech". GQ.
  37. ↑ "Best in Comedy". Shorty Awards.
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