Avantika Vandanapu has already had a pretty wild career for someone who started acting as a child. The Bay Area-born actress began working in Telugu cinema before moving into American projects, eventually landing the lead in Disney's Spin and appearing in Senior Year, Mean Girls, Tarot, and Prime Video's Big Girls Don't Cry.

We talk about growing up between California and India, starting her career so young, and making the jump from Telugu films to becoming a Disney lead. Her story about getting the Spin audition through her mom's relentless detective work is particularly great, as is the moment when Disney asked her to translate something into Hindi and she realized that understanding a language and actually translating it on command are two very different things.

We get into being South Asian, being Gen Z, and how those identities shift depending on the room you're in. We also manage to talk R&B and DJing, and establish that I apparently have enough dad jokes to justify my new(ish) status as a father.

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Hari Kondabolu is a comedian, writer and podcaster whose work has landed him everywhere from Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Conan to Comedy Central, and his documentary The Problem with Apu. He also has a Master's in Human Rights from the London School of Economics, which may explain why a conversation with Hari can go from tennis and punk rock to race, power and colonialism without ever feeling like that much of a detour.

Hari and I had actually been talking before we started recording, and at one point we realized, "Wait, this is the conversation." So we hit record and just kept going. I really enjoyed getting into his journey from working in immigrant rights in Seattle and treating comedy as a hobby to accidentally having a career take off around the same time he got accepted to the LSE. We get into why he has such little patience for comedians who hide behind "it's just a joke," the difference between shocking an audience and actually saying something, and why he thinks comedy is art in the first place.

Watch Hari's recent comedy special "Vacation Baby"

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The second time Hasan Minhaj joins me on the podcast, we get a little deeper into the question of what it actually means to "make it." By this point, Hasan had already worked on The Daily Show, and released multiple comedy specials, but he was already thinking beyond the next accomplishment and toward the larger body of work he wanted to build.

We get into the idea of burning the boats, why the moment of victory is never quite long enough, and the difference between playing offense and playing defense in your career and your life. Hasan also shares some lessons he's picked up from working alongside people like Jerry Seinfeld, Trevor Noah, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, including one particularly good reminder about what happens when fame becomes part of your identity. It's a conversation about ambition, perspective, longevity, and figuring out how to enjoy the thing you're actually doing instead of constantly waiting for whatever comes next.

Listen to Hasan Minhaj's Podcast "Hasan Minhaj Doesn't Know"

Catch Hasan live on tour for "Hasan Hates Ronny"

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Hasan Minhaj has built one of the most distinctive careers in comedy, from The Daily Show and the White House Correspondents' Dinner to his Peabody, and Emmy-winning Patriot Act and Netflix specials like Homecoming King and The King's Jester. But for me, Hasan is also my old roommate, which makes this episode feel a little different from the usual celebrity interview.

We talk about why he chose comedy in the first place, the insecurity and ambition that can fuel a comedian, and why he believes the best comics eventually have to dig deep enough to find themselves. Hasan also has some very strong opinions about Jay-Z, Friends, and whether humanity is actually getting better. It's funny, surprisingly philosophical, and very much a snapshot of Hasan before the rest of the world knew what he was capable of.

Listen to Hasan Minhaj's Podcast "Hasan Minhaj Doesn't Know"

Catch Hasan live on tour for "Hasan Hates Ronny"

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Deepak Chorpa is a bestselling author and one of the most recognizable voices in modern spirituality and wellness. The author of more than 90 books, including The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success and Metahuman, he has spent decades exploring the intersection of consciousness, health, science, and human potential. And this isn't even our first time sitting down together - Deepak has been kind enough to return for another conversation, which gave us a lot more room to go down some pretty interesting rabbit holes.

One of the ideas I keep coming back to from this conversation is Deepak's argument that defining yourself can actually limit you. We put ourselves into boxes based on nationality, religion, profession, family, history, even our own names, and then spend a lifetime defending those definitions. Deepak's challenge is much more radical: don't just get out of the box - get rid of the box altogether. For a comedian, that's a pretty irresistible idea to explore.

Deepak has a way of taking a seemingly simple question and opening five more doors behind it, so I mostly just tried to keep up. I've now had the chance to sit across from Deepak multiple times, and each conversation seems to leave me with a different question to chew on. This one is no exception.

Pre-Order Deepak's upcoming book "Awakening in the Final Chapter: Aging with Grace, Love, and Freedom"

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Ian Edwards is a stand-up comedian and writer who has performed on Def Comedy Jam, The Tonight Show, Conan, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and Gotham Comedy Live. He's also written for shows including The Boondocks and Black-ish, but if you ask Ian to describe himself, his answer is much simpler: "lazy and ambitious."

That combination pretty much tells you what kind of conversation this is. Ian has a wonderfully sideways way of looking at things, and I get him talking about the strange logic behind his comedy, performing in England, growing up Jamaican American, and the completely ridiculous situations that somehow become great comedy material.

There is also a pretty great running battle between Ian's ambition and his laziness - including a day when he woke up early, exercised, watched The Borgias, took a nap, watched more The Borgias, and ultimately considered waking up early to be his major accomplishment. Honestly, I respect the commitment to the bit.

Ian is the kind of comedian who can make an ordinary observation feel like a completely new thought, and this episode gives him plenty of room to do exactly that. It's loose, weird, very funny, and full of the kind of stories that make you understand the comedian a little better without ever feeling like we're sitting down for a formal lesson in comedy.

Watch Ian's recent special: "Untitled | The Comedy Special You Didn't Know You Needed"

Catch Ian on tour

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Aparna Nancherla is a comedian, writer, actress, and bestselling author whose distinctive voice has made her one of the most original comics working today. You've seen her stand-up on Netflix, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and Conan, heard her in BoJack Horseman, and watched her in series like Corporate, The Great North, The Standups, and A Simple Favor. Her memoir, Unreliable Narrator, further cemented her reputation as one of comedy's most thoughtful and honest voices.

We sit down over a game of Jenga, but the conversation quickly becomes something much more interesting. We talk about why performing comedy became possible only after confronting depression and anxiety and what it's like to build a career while staying true to a personality that isn't exactly the loudest one in the room. I really appreciated how candid she is about mental health. Nothing feels performative. She's simply willing to talk about experiences that a lot of people quietly carry around every day.

Of course, we still make time for the important questions. We debate why people invent terrible excuses for skipping parties, the ethics of overpriced coffee, and whether meditation automatically makes you a better person.

Aparna has a quiet confidence that's easy to miss if you're only listening for jokes, but it's exactly what makes her such a compelling comedian. As simple as her advice sounds - "just keep going" - I have a feeling it's going to stick with a lot of people.

Order Aparna's book "Unreliable Narrator: My, Myself, and Imposter Syndrome"

Watch Aparna's special on Comedy Central's "The Half Hour"

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Kevin Nealon is a comedian, actor, and writer whose nine-year run on Saturday Night Live produced unforgettable characters like Mr. Subliminal and Hans and Franz. He's also known for starring in Weeds, appearing in films like Happy Gilmore, The Wedding Singer, Grandma's Boy, and Daddy Day Care, and, more recently, for his wonderfully offbeat hiking interview series, Hiking with Kevin.

Kevin has one of those comedic brains that never seems to stop wandering, and that's exactly what makes this conversation so much fun. We bounce between stand-up, sketch comedy, life at SNL, and the strange little observations that seem to fuel his humor. I loved hearing him talk about the value of slowing down enough to notice things most people walk right past. It's a perspective that explains a lot about why his comedy has always felt so effortless.

Kevin seems incredibly in his own skin. After decades in comedy, there's no sense that he's trying to prove anything. He's curious, playful, and just as happy talking about everyday life as he is sharing stories from one of the most iconic comedy institutions in television history. That's probably why this conversation feels less like an interview and more like spending an afternoon with someone who's mastered the art of finding humor in just about everything.

Watch Kevin's full comedy special "Loose in the Crotch"

See Kevin on tour

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Chris D'Elia is a stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and podcast host whose career has included starring roles in NBC's Whitney, Undateable, Netflix's You, and The Good Doctor, along with multiple stand-up specials that have made him one of comedy's biggest touring acts. This conversation, though, catches Chris at a fascinating moment - right as Whitney is about to premiere and everything is beginning to take off.

I always enjoy looking back at conversations like this because you can hear someone who's excited, grateful, and still very much in "building mode." Chris talks about the years of auditioning before finally landing a network sitcom, why he never wanted success to change the way he approached comedy, and the importance of embracing what makes you different instead of trying to fit someone else's mold. There's a confidence there, but it hasn't crossed into certainty yet, which makes for a really fun snapshot in time.

We debate the artistic merits of hip-hop, laugh about his website making fun of rap lyrics, complain about people asking for rides to the airport, and rank movies versus television. It's one of those conversations that constantly bounces between thoughtful and absurd without ever announcing the transition.

Watch Chris' recent special "Grow or Die"

Catch Chris on tour

Listen to Chris' podcast "Congradulations"

Shop Chris D'Elia's merch line

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Aasif Mandvi is an actor, comedian, and writer best known for his years as a correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, along with memorable roles in Evil, The Internship, Spider-Man 2, Million Dollar Arm, and The Last Airbender. As both a performer and outspoken commentator, he's spent years using comedy to examine politics, identity, and the immigrant experience from a perspective that's entirely his own.

I knew this conversation would go deep pretty quickly, but I didn't expect us to dive in headfirst quite like we did. We spend a lot of time unpacking the 2016 election, media, representation in Hollywood, and the responsibility that comes with having a platform. Aasif doesn't offer rehearsed talking points. He thinks out loud, challenges assumptions - including some of my own - and isn't afraid to wrestle with ideas that don't have easy answers.

That said, this isn't a political debate disguised as a podcast. We also talk about growing up between cultures, the strange expectations placed on South Asian actors, and how comedy can sometimes reach people in ways that facts alone can't. Whether you've followed Aasif since his Daily Show days or know him from his work as an actor, I think you'll appreciate hearing him without a script, a teleprompter, or a character to play.

Read Aasif's book "No Land's Man"

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