Hank Azaria wants to make amends for voicing the Indian American character of Apu Nahasapeemapetilon on "The Simpsons.”
Azaria, who is white, voiced Apu, the owner of Springfiled’s Kwik-E-Mart, from 1988 to 2020 on the Fox animated series.
Back in 2017, Apu’s character came under fire as racist and stereotypical following the release of the documentary “The Trouble with Apu” by comedian Hari Kondabolu.
While Azaria announced he would no longer voice the controversial character last year, the 56-year-old is now opening up his journey to educate himself and own up for his contribution to the insensitive portrayal, reported The Hollywood Reporter.
After Padman, who is the daughter of Indian immigrants, shared her experiences and perspective on the character, Azaria apologized personally to her and to members of the entire Indian American community.
"I really do apologize," Azaria said. "I know you weren't asking for that, but it's important. I apologize for my part in creating that and participating in that. Part of me feels like I need to go to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologize. And sometimes I do."
In June 2020, FOX announced that it would begin to diversify casting for non-white characters.
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"Moving forward, The Simpsons will no longer have white actors voice non-white characters," Fox spokesman Les Eisner said in a statement.
Azaria continues to work on “The Simpsons” by voicing the characters Moe Szyslak, Chief Wiggum, and Comic Book Guy on the series.
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