Mindy Kaling Expertly Shut Down This Stereotype About Working Moms

Working moms deal with a lot of stigma, from being judged to facing discrimination and obstacles in the workplace. For celebrities, mom-shaming and mom guilt can be taken to a whole new level thanks to their position in the public eye. But, celebrity moms are speaking up more and more about their experiences. For instance, in a recent interview, Mindy Kaling shared her response to stereotypes about working moms and her message will resonate with moms all over.

Famously known for her work on The Office and her role as writer, producer, and star on The Mindy Project, Kaling has captured people's attention as a comedian and one of the most relatable celebs (and, more specially, celeb moms) out there. On Dec. 15, 2017, Kaling gave birth to her first child, Katherine Swati Kaling, as reported by People. Though the actress typically keeps her private life out of the public eye, every so often she opens up about how she's adjusting to life as a working mom and life with her baby girl.

In a recent interview with People, for instance, Kaling opened up about how discrimination like sexism has impacted her in the entertainment industry, and how it plays into her life as a mother.

Kaling has continued working after her daughter's birth. In 2018, A Wrinkle In Time was released, in which Kaling co-stars along big names such as Reese Witherspoon and Oprah Winfrey. With baby Katherine coming up on her first birthday, it makes total sense that Kaling is getting more involved in other projects.

However, getting back into entertainment as a mom isn't always easy. Any mom can attest to the fact that daycare is ridiculously expensive. And as some workplace culture tries to continuously appeal to a certain type of 20-something, it tends to leave out mothers. Sometimes, there's a workplace culture that punishes moms for daring to have kids, as noted by Fast Company.

People have been making the case for childcare in the workplace for ages and it seems Kaling is on board with it. In her recent interview, Kaling told People that because there's "more mature people working on shows," she thinks "that's gonna be the next big push, actually, is making places so you can be a mom, have your kids, bring your kids to work if you need to."

In the same People interview, Kaling added:

But I think it’s a tiny bit sexist as well, and people are worried that because you have kids you won’t be able to pay more attention. Any mother will tell you it makes you so razor-sharp focused on your career because you’re so worried about money.

Indeed, raising kids is expensive, so even celebrity moms, like Kaling, worry about money. According to CNN Money, it costs $233,610 to raise a child born in 2015. A recent study found that, although men's wages increase more than 6 percent when they had children, a mother's wage decreased 4 percent for each child she had.

At the end of the day, Kaling's love for her daughter is so clear and while parenting is hard, especially as a single/ working mom, it's obvious she's obsessed with her new role. For example, when speaking about motherhood earlier this year, according to ELLE, Kaling said:

... don't be scared if you don't do things in the right order, or if you don't do some things at all. I didn't think I'd have a child before I got married, but hey, it turned out that way, and I wouldn't change a thing.

It'll be exciting to watch as Kaling continues to write, produce, act, and create all these opportunities for herself. After all, Kaling is an inspiring role model not just for her own daughter, but for other little girls and countless women, too.