Kal Penn - Biography

Last Editor: MissPrincess				Kal Penn Biography -   Name : Kal Penn Born : April 23, 1977 Montclair, New Jersey, USA Notable roles : Taj Mahal Badalandabad in Van Wilder & Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj Kumar in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle Gogol Ganguli in The Name Birth Name : Kalpen Modi Age : 31 Occupation : Actor, producer

Kal Penn Trivia -

Kal Penn was born in New Jersey, now resides in L.A. He and the other students were banned from using the word "like" in his acting classes, this was to make them sound more intelligent during auditions. He attended the Fine and Performing Arts Center at Howell High School in Farmingdale, New Jersey where he went though an intense study of the arts in acting, dance/movement, and vocal training. Once directed Jason Allentoff in a short film for a college project. Kal is a vegetarian, contrary to the role that he plays in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004). Met future Where's the Party Yaar? (2003) co-star Datta Dave and Dave's current financial adviser Mihir Upadhyaya during college at UCLA. He assisted Dave in his pursuit of an acting career. Kal has one younger brother. His father is an engineer and his mother, who has a master's in chemistry, worked as a fragrance evaluator for a perfume company. When he was in 8th grade he was in a school production of the musical "The Wiz". He is of Gujarati Indian descent. Although he attended Howell High School's performing arts program, he later transferred to Freehold Township (NJ) High School, where he graduated in 1995. Lives in same Los Angeles apartment building as director 'Leon Shanglebee'. Attended UCLA. He began using the name Kal Penn, a variation on his first name Kalpen, to get more roles; he believed that his difficult foreign name would scare away potential employers. He is the first Indian-American actor to have a successful career in mainstream Hollywood. Was offered a part in "Planet Terror," the Robert Rodriguez segment of Grindhouse (2007), but turned it down due to the conflicting shoot of The Namesake (2006). His favorite book is "The Namesake" and used to check into hotels under the pseudonym of "Gogol Ganguli", the lead character of the book. When found out that Mira Nair was making a film out of it, despite her having already cast an actor in the part, Penn lobbied for the role and eventually won it. Studied acting under the same teacher (Reynold Forman) as Anthony Bradford. During the Spring 2008 semester, he was an adjunct faculty member in the Asian American Studies Program at the University of Pennsylvania (familiarly called "Penn") in Philadelphia. He taught a lecture course, "Images of Asian Americans in the Media," and a seminar, "Contemporary American Teen Films," both of which were cross-listed in the Cinema Studies department. His faculty listing on the Asian America Studies Program website gives his name as Kalpen Modi (his real name) first, with his stage name, Kal Penn, in parentheses. He is in the process of earning a graduate certificate in international security from Stanford University. On April 8, 2009 Penn announced that he would join the Obama White House as Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Liaison, after his character on the House TV Series, Dr. Lawrence Kutner was written out by committing suicide.

Kal Penn Detailed Biography -

Kalpen Suresh Modi (born April 23, 1977) is an American actor, known by his stage name, Kal Penn. He is known for his starring roles in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, National Lampoon's Van Wilder and the recently released The Namesake (2007). Penn was born in Montclair, New Jersey to an engineer father and a mother who worked as a fragrance evaluator for a perfume company; both of his parents were immigrants of Gujarati Indian ancestry. Penn is an alumnus of Howell High School and The Fine and Performing Arts Specialized Learning Center for three years. He graduated at Freehold Township High School where he attended for his senior year only. He attended the University of California, Los Angeles where he double majored in Film and Sociology. While at UCLA, he was a founding member of the underground intellectual society, "6 South." Due to creative differences the group disbanded but are currently considering a reunion. He also played a big role in the on-campus club, Sangam, which has also disbanded. Penn has been a vegetarian since birth. Penn's feature film debut came in 1998 in Express: Aisle to Glory. He has since appeared in American Desi, National Lampoon's Van Wilder, Malibu's Most Wanted, A Lot Like Love, Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, Dude, Where's the Party?, Love Don't Cost a Thing, Superman Returns, National Lampoon's Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj, Epic Movie, The Namesake, and will be a part of the upcoming Harold & Kumar End Up in Gitmo. Penn was featured in the The Lonely Island's rejected Awesometown MTV pilot music video, along with his friend Brandon Routh (who played Superman in Superman Returns). Penn also played one of Lex Luthor's henchmen in Superman Returns. Penn says that he chose the stage name Kal Penn (from Kalpen Suresh Modi) as a lark: “Almost as a joke to prove friends wrong, and half as an attempt to see if what I was told would work (that anglicized names appeal more to a white-dominated industry), I put ‘Kal Penn’ on my resume and photos." His audition callbacks rose by 50%. Penn has stated that he prefers his birth name and uses "Kal Penn" only for professional purposes. In January 2007, Penn appeared in the first four episodes of the sixth season of 24 as Ahmed Amar, a villain. Penn says he nearly turned down the role due to personal ethics, stating, "I have a huge political problem with the role. It was essentially accepting a form of racial profiling. I think it’s repulsive. But it was the first time I had a chance to blow stuff up and take a family hostage. As an actor, why shouldn’t I have that opportunity? Because I'm brown and I should be scared about the connection between media images and people's thought processes?" Also in January 2007, he appeared in the spoof comedy Epic Movie as well as the television show Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, where he played a recognition-starved rapist and murderer. In May 2007, Penn received the Asian Excellence Award for Outstanding Actor for his performance in The Namesake. In spring 2008, Penn will serve as visiting professor of Asian American Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He will teach two courses: “Images of Asian Americans in the Media," and “Contemporary American Teen Films." On April 8, 2009 Penn announced that he would join the Obama White House as Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Liaison, after his character on the House TV Series, Dr. Lawrence Kutner was written out by committing suicide.