Apu is speaking again on The Simpsons, and for the first time the voice behind him belongs to a South Asian actor. Sunil Malhotra, an actor born in India and raised in the US, voices the Kwik-E-Mart owner in "The Revengening," a Sunday episode that Gulf News reports was kept under wraps until it aired. It is a casting correction years in the making, and it lands with real weight for South Asian American performers.

Who is Sunil Malhotra?

Malhotra's credits include Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi, The Legend of Vox Machina, The Legend of Korra and Grey's Anatomy. He told Variety that when his agent mentioned a Simpsons audition, he knew immediately it was for Apu, and that he felt uneasy but curious. He wondered whether the writers' room had changed and whether the show could bring Apu back while acknowledging past mistakes.

He says the process was "a deeply collaborative experience," working with showrunner Matt Selman and co-executive producer Cesar Mazariegos. On Instagram, he called the role a reclamation: "It truly is his homecoming." He also says he hopes the character works for longtime fans and for South Asian kids who, like him, stopped watching.

Why was Apu shelved in the first place?

Apu has appeared on The Simpsons since 1990. For nearly three decades he was voiced by Hank Azaria, who used an exaggerated Indian accent. The 2017 documentary The Problem With Apu, made by Indian American comedian Hari Kondabolu, argued that the character leaned on racial stereotypes. Azaria announced in 2020 that he would no longer voice Apu. On Dax Shepard's Armchair Expert podcast, he said part of him felt he needed to personally apologize to every Indian person in the US.

After that, Apu faded from the show. Gulf News reports he appeared only in the background in the years that followed, which makes a speaking return a deliberate choice rather than a quiet reappearance.

What does the new casting mean for South Asian American actors?

A voice role is a job, and for decades a South Asian character on one of television's longest-running series was a job held by someone outside the community. Putting Malhotra in the booth changes who is paid and credited for that work. It also changes whose interpretation of the character reaches the screen.

The casting change does not stop at Apu. Gulf News reports that his wife, Manjula, will now be voiced by Janina Gavankar, known for Apple TV's The Morning Show, replacing Jan Hooks and Tress MacNeille. The reporting does not describe contract terms for either actor, and 88tumble will not guess at them.

The question Kondabolu raised in 2017 is now being answered on screen, and viewers will decide for themselves whether the answer works. 88tumble has not independently confirmed fan or critic reaction, so none is included here.

What to watch next

The first thing to watch is how Apu is written now that he speaks again, and whether the writers lean on the accent that drew the criticism. The second is whether more South Asian American voice actors land recurring roles on long-running animated series. Anyone casting, repping or writing in that space will be tracking both.

Source: Gulf News, updated October 20, 2026.