“Simpsons”: Apu Nahasapeemapetilon speaks again – but with a new voice

The popular figure of supermarket owner Apu at the “Simpsons” has broken her silence after nine years. He was silent after racism debates.

Updated: Oct 20, 2026, 7:09 AM 2 min read deublitz newsroom

Cartoon character Apu Nahasapeemapetilon: Racist stereotype?

Surprise at the »Simpsons«: Apu Nahasapeemapetilon is now back on the soundtrack. After nine years, Apu spoke again in the new episode “The Revengening”, which aired on Sunday evening in the USA. Since October 2017, the character had only been seen, but not heard. Now he has a new voice: the actor and voice actor Sunil Malhotra.

Supermarket owner Apu, nephew Jay: Indian accent greatly exaggerated

Apu had repeatedly been accused of racism. Critics accused the long-time speaker of the character, US actor Hank Azaria, of a clichéd portrayal because he greatly exaggerated the Indian accent. In 2017, the documentary »The Problem with Apu« caused a sensation, director Hari Kondabolu had previously spoken of Azaria as a »white guy« who »parodies a white guy who makes fun of my father«.

Actor Sunil Malhotra gives Apu a new voice

In early 2020, Azaria gave up the setting. The “Simpsons” creators declared that non-white figures generally no longer speak of whites. In an interview with SPIEGEL, Azaria had said that it was not about racist hatred, but “the racism in the groundwater of our societies”. He himself was an “unwitting white guy”.

He was initially skeptical, said the new spokesman Sunil Malhotra to the US magazine “Variety”. When his agent called him for an audition for the Simpsons, he immediately knew what the role was – “and I became very different.”

He had taken time to consider what it would mean to take on the role of Apu: »Did the writing team look different now? Could they bring him back to admit past mistakes and apologize for them? Could I interpret the character in my own way and reclaim it? He hoped that the result would be equally satisfactory for long-time fans of the series and for people of South Asian descent. In the German version, Apu was spoken over many episodes by actor Tobias Lelle. Whether Apu will also receive a new vote in this country, is officially not yet determined.