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Anand Mahalingam: Embracing Identity and Purpose Through Creativity, Coaching & Confidence /Ep 4014


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As an Indian-American actor and comedian, my journey to Hollywood has been anything but 'typical'. I had always had a flair for the dramatic as a teenager, dancing in & MCing cultural shows at my temple. The trend continued into college, where I realized something: I am much better at entertaining people than I am at attending class. I MC'd every cultural show my group had on campus over a 2 year span. When it came time to host an Indian classical dance competition at school, I taught myself Adobe Creative Suite so I could edit promo videos to attract guests. From there I learned the entire filmmaking process through YouTube tutorials starting with post-production and ending with pre-production and development. I ended up dropping out of college and moving to LA to write and direct movies. While out there, I took an improv class to keep the performing spirit alive within me. My classmates convinced me that I should try stand-up and acting, which ended up becoming my career. Fast forward till now and I have performed in every single comedy club in LA, got my first national commercial and first speaking role on television, and just played the lead role in a movie for the first time. All while building and maintaining relationships in a brand new city 2,000 miles away from home with no connections when I first moved there.

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#12minconvosBy Engel Jones

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