As an actor, writer and producer, Mindy Kaling has a long list of accomplishments attached to her name — and she is also a mother of three.
“The Office” alum has a 6-year-old daughter, Katherine and and a 3-year-old son, Spencer and a daughter named Anne who was born in February 2024, Kaling shared on Instagram, along with photos of her children.
Kaling is always careful to photograph her children from the back so their faces don’t appear on social media. She has also never identified the father of children. Close friend and former “The Office” co-star B.J. Novak is the godfather of her two eldest children and she has spoken about the special connection they share.
On Kaling’s birthday in June 2023, she posted a now-deleted photo of her two eldest children, crediting them for helping her become “the healthiest” version of herself.
Kaling acknowledged she “was never a ‘kid’ person” until her mom died in 2012.
“When my mom passed though, it just clicked in me: I wanted kids with such intense certainty. I bet some of you can relate,” she wrote. “Now I’m just trying to be present for them (hard for me! I’m impatient!), being up for anything (again hard for me, I am not whimsical!), and stay healthy for these two guys (ALSO hard! I just want to eat cheesesteaks every meal in front of the TV) for until I’m an old gray skeleton and they’re like ‘mom, you gotta go.’”
Read on to learn more about Kaling’s three children.
Katherine ‘Kit’ Kaling
In December 2017, Kaling welcomed her first child: Katherine “Kit” Kaling. Kaling didn’t publicly reveal she was expecting until she confirmed the news on TODAY about four months prior to giving birth.
A few years later, the “Mindy Project” alum told People that her daughter’s name is a tribute to Katharine Hepburn.
“I just tried to pick classic names that felt like they would have to work really hard to get mad at me about later,” she told the publication.
In October 2020, Kaling stopped by TODAY and spoke about her daughter’s bond with godfather Novak.
“You know, he said the funniest thing because he’s so attached to my older child, my daughter,” Kaling told Jenna Bush Hager. “When I said, you know, ‘B.J., if something happens to me, it’s not like I have a husband, like you have to just take the kids.’ And he’s like ‘Oh, my God, don’t tempt me.’”
Kaling said Novak is committed to his role as a godfather.
“He said the funniest thing, he was like, ‘Can you sue for god-paternity rights?’” Kaling shared. “He just loves her so much.”
Kaling has shared special moments with Kit on Instagram.
In August 2023, the mother-daughter duo visited SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, to catch Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour,” marking Kit’s first-ever concert.
“She swapped friendship bracelets all night and got to hear her favorite Taylor song live, ‘Cruel Summer!’ It was such a magical night,” Kaling wrote in the caption, in part.
The next month, Kaling took Kit to school for her first day of kindergarten. Kaling shared a photo of her daughter carrying a backpack that read “Kit.”
“First day of kindergarten! How is she so big!” she wrote in the caption.
For Kit’s birthday last year, Kaling penned a sweet Instagram tribute with photos from a Disneyland trip.
“How are you 6 years old, Kit?!” wrote Kaling. “I remember when you were a newborn and I took you home from Cedars and you looked at me like ‘does this lady even know what she’s doing?’ And I didn’t!”
She added, “But now you’re 6 and every single day you bring me so much joy. Like most recently now you love shout-singing @aliciakeys ‘THIS. GIRL. IS. ON. FIYYYAAHHH!!’ You are on fire. I love you.”
Kaling shared more fun facts about her daughter when speaking to TODAY.com in March 2024, praising Kit for being “very interested in order and structure.”
“She’s Type A in that way, and I really like that about her,” she said. She also said her daughter likes stories about “dramatic situations” and “people fighting against injustice.”
Spencer ‘Spike’ Kaling
In March 2024, Kaling told TODAY.com that her son, who was named after actor Spencer Tracy, has a nickname. But he’s still getting used to it.
“Spike is something we’re trying to get going. People tend to call him Spence or Spencey, but I prefer Spike,” she said.
Kaling added, “The problem is …. he’s not a Spike. He’s one of the sweetest little boys and Spike has the connotations of kind of like a punky energy.”
She also gushed about her children’s close bond, recalling Spencer waking up from a nap and requesting to see his sister.
“She sat down next to him and he put his head in her lap and she kissed him,” Kaling told TODAY.com. “Literally, all you want as a parent are these glimmers of hope that your children will get along with each other unprompted.”
She continued, “When they’re (asked) ‘Who is your best friend?’ they say each other, and that is incredibly moving.”
Kaling kept her pregnancy private until after she welcomed Spencer.
During an appearance on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” in October 2020, Kaling revealed she was a mom of two.
“I’m telling it for the first time now. It feels so strange, but I gave birth to a baby boy on September 3,” Kaling announced.
Stephen Colbert replied, “No one even knew you were pregnant!”
Kaling said, “I know! This is news to a lot of people. It’s true.”
On Spencer’s second birthday on Sept. 3, 2022, Kaling uploaded a cute video of him dancing in his crib and waving at his shadow on the wall. “Hi!” he said repeatedly.
“Happy 2nd birthday to my son Spencer, who is the human personification of a hug,” Kaling said in the caption. “I can’t describe the intense joy it is to be your mom. You remind this old cynical lady that the world is full of wonder, and fun can be found in the most mundane places. Here Spencer is greeting his friend, the morning shadow in his crib.”
In her TODAY.com interview, Kaling marveled at how fast her son is growing, sharing, “His language has really taken off.”
Anne Kaling
On June 24, 2024, Kaling announced that she had given birth months earlier to her third child, a daughter named Anne.
“In late February I gave birth to my daughter, Anne,” Kaling captioned an Instagram announcement with photos of her children. “She’s the best birthday present I could’ve ever imagined. When things are hard, whenever I veer towards cynicism, my three kids are such a great reminder of the pure joy in my life. I’m so lucky I live in a place where I could do this by myself, on my own timeline. Thanks for all the birthday wishes!”
