Mindy Kaling had tough time learning Hindi

Actress Mindy Kaling, who has Indian roots, says it was difficult to learn Hindi for her forthcoming movie Ocean’s 8.

“When I was cast in Ocean’s 8, I didn’t think there would be much prep but I ended up doing more than on any movie I’ve worked on,” Kaling said. “I had to become fluent enough in Hindi that I could speak it with ease in a couple of scenes and that wasn’t easy because I don’t speak any Indian language. 

“I was raised speaking English only because my parents spoke two different Indian languages, so the only language we all had in common was English. I also shadowed a jeweller so that I could learn how to hold all the instruments of the trade,” the actress said. In the film, Kaling plays Amita, a jewellery maker, who turns a $150 million diamond necklace into seven smaller pieces in the name of a heist. 

A sequel to Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s trilogy, Ocean’s 8 stars Sandra Bullock as ringleader Debbie Ocean.—IANS