NO ONE HAS CHANGED THEIR
MIND ABOUT SOMETHING
SINCE, LIKE, THE MID-’90S.
Movies used to provide that break. But then the dozens of viewings of
Broadcast News (which fans of Silicon Valley might also very much appreciate)
Groundhog Day, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Shaun of the Dead, and Guillermo
and Dog Day Afternoon. If he were to begin a new podcast project, it would be
del Toro’s The Devil’s Backbone eventually became a kind of filmic education.
a series about the classic films that he has not yet seen (beginning, tragically,
Then video games were the break, until those games gave rise to a podcast
with The Deer Hunter).
that gave rise to a few takes a few degrees too hot (or too contrary to public
opinion), which gave rise to a lot of “fuck”s and a nearly equal number of
This irrepressible passion for all things is, luckily, not immaterial to
“you”s. And now there is the one-hour commute to the Silicon Valley shoot
his work as an actor/podcaster/tweeter/comedian/activist/writer. He’s
and the one-hour commute back, and podcasts to fill the time.
about to start shooting his first major film project, The Big Sick, which
is to be directed by Michael Showalter and produced by Judd Apatow,
Nanjiani’s current favorite for that hour-long reverie is NPR’s Pop Culture
and was written by Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon (his wife, copodcaster,
Happy Hour (PCHH). “I like it because they’re very passionate, very intelligent
and frequent collaborator). The film is based upon he and Gordon’s
people. They’ve made me reconsider a lot of things, and [host Linda Holmes]
lived experiences—and to hear him tell it, there were very few points at
has shown me that sometimes it’s OK to not really have a take on something,”
which the screenwriters did not have their favorite movies at the front of
he says. This seems especially important to Nanjiani after his experience with
their minds. “Look at the great movies. Take Four Weddings. Every single
Unpronounceable, which included reflections on both pornography and his
character—and there’s a lot of characters in that movie—every character
native Pakistan (among many other things), and ended when he felt like there
finds love. Every single character has their own storyline. Every single
could be repercussions for family members still in Pakistan. “I don’t think
character has agency. We also wanted to make sure that everybody’s story
anyone would watch that show and be upset by it,” he says. “People are offended
[in The Big Sick] was interesting.”
by the simplification that occurs via the game of telephone that we all play.
Morally, I felt like I