Mindy Kaling praises her dad for how he 'shows up' for her children

"I love him to the moon and back, which is what he says to my kids."

June 19, 2023, 1:41 PM

Mindy Kaling recently shared a powerful note to her father expressing her gratitude for all he does for her children.

The actress, writer and producer praised her dad in a tribute posted for Father's Day, alongside a photo of her dad with her children Katherine, 5, and Spencer, 2, writing, "My dad shows up. He was the one who drove me home from the hospital after both my kids were born."

She then shared just a few things her father does to "show up" for her and her children.

"To this day, he comes to the house at least once a day to play with the kids, take them to the farmers market, pick them up from school, or walk Spencer around the block in my son's precious blue toddler car," she wrote. "He also says yes to my kids when they say 'let's spin Grandpa around in the round chair really fast'."

Kaling went on to say that her love "deepened" for her father "when he became a grandfather, the role he was born to play."

"I love him to the moon and back, which is what he says to my kids," she wrote.

"The Office" alum then shared her wish for anyone with children to have their own support system -- whether that's through a father figure or not.

"Whoever it is for your family - husband, partner, grandparent, mom, wife, step-parent, nanny, sibling, old friend - I hope you have someone out there who shows up for you and your family!" she wrote.

"It is the great blessing of our life," she added.

In an interview with Marie Claire last year, Kaling spoke why she keeps her kids out of the spotlight.

"I want them to be old enough to talk to me about it and [tell me] how they want me to talk about it," she told the magazine on the topic. "I'm the only parent my kids have…I think I err on the side of super cautious so that there's less things that they can potentially be mad at me about down the line."

She also spoke about the point in her life when she chose to have kids.

"I waited until I had the means and that made all the difference," she said. "The choice to have a child -- by yourself, on your own terms -- it was the best part of my life ... It's the thing that I hope women feel confident doing by themselves."