Biography
Kal Penn
Who is Kal Penn?
Kal Penn is an American actor and comedian who played the role of Lawrence Kutner in the American medical drama TV series ‘House’ and the role of Kumar Patel in the American stoner comedy movie series ‘Harold and Kumar.’ He has also played Nikhil ‘Gogol’ Ganguli’s role in the 2006 English-language drama movie ‘The Namesake.’ Furthermore, Kal Penn is also a former staff member of the White House. He was an Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement from 20 January 2009 till 20 August 2011 during the Obama administration. Omarosa Manigault Newman next superseded him.
| Quick Info | |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Kalpen Suresh Modi |
| Date of Birth | April 23, 1977 |
| Birth Place | Montclair, New Jersey, United States |
| Parents | Asmita Modi Suresh Modi |
| Profession | Actor, Comedian, Former Associate Director |
| Nationality | American |
| Age | 43 years |
| Height | 5 ft 10 in |
| Weight | 78 kg |
| Net Worth | US $15 million |
Bio
Kal Penn’s full name is Kalpen Suresh Modi. He was born on 23 April 1977 in Montclair, New Jersey. He is a first-generation inhabitant of the United States. His dad, Suresh Modi, is an engineer, and his mom, Asmita Bhatt, works as a fragrance evaluator for a perfume company. His father was initially born in Kaira, Gujarat, India, and his mother grew in Baroda, Gujarat, India. He also has a brother Pulin Modi. His interest in politics grew stronger after he was inspired by his grandparents’ tales, who marched alongside Mahatma Gandhi, an anti-colonial nationalist who successfully freed India from the British rule practicing non-violent resistance.
Nationality and Physical Stats
Kal Penn holds an American nationality, and as per ethnicity, he is a Gujarati Indian. Being born to an Indian family, he practices Hinduism as his religion. In addition to this, Kal Penn stands at the height of 5 feet and 10 inches (1.78m/178cms) and weighs around 78kgs (171lbs). He has a pair of brown ears complimenting his black hair color.
Education
Kal Penn studied at the Marlboro Middle School situated in Marlboro Township, New Jersey. He was interested in school plays and theater productions from a young age and participated actively in such programs. Kal also attended the Howell High School’s Fine and Performing Arts Academy for a theater major and completed his senior year from the Freehold Township High School. He later studied and completed his graduation in 2000 from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Personal Life
Kal Penn is currently single and is not associated with any relationship with anyone.
Social
Kal Penn, his Instagram account (@kalpenn) has more than 246 thousand followers, and his Twitter account (@kalpenn) has more than 605 thousand followers. His official Facebook page (@kalpenn) has more than 93 thousand followers, with more than 93 thousand likes.
Career
Filmography
In the year 1998, Kal Penn has played the role of Jackie Newton in ‘Express: Aisle to Glory.’ He has also played as Ajay in ‘Freshman’ (1999), as Ajay Pandya in ‘American Desi’ (2001), as Kendal Cunningham in ‘Hector’ (2002), as Taj Mahal Badalandabad in ‘Van Wilder’ (2002), as Sanjay in ‘Badger’ (2002), as Vandana’s Fiancé in ‘Cosmopolitan’ (2003), as Kenneth Warman in ‘Love Don’t Cost a Thing’ (2003), as Hadji in ‘Malibu’s Most Wanted’ (2003), as Mohan ‘Mo’ Bakshi in ‘Dude, Where’s the Party?’ (2003).
In 2004, he starred as Bobby in ‘Ball and Chain’ and as Harrison in ‘Homeland Security.’ In 2005, he starred as Sam in ‘Dancing in Twilight,’ as Jorge in ‘Son of the Mask,’ as Jeeter in ‘A Lot like Love’ and as Raj in ‘Sueño.’ In the year 2006, he has played as Alan Fineberg in ‘Man About Town,’ as Z-Bob in ‘Bachelor Party Vegas,’ as Gogol/Nikhil Ganguli in ‘The Namesake,’ as Stanford in ‘Superman Returns,’ as Amit Sayid in ‘Deck the Halls’ and as Taj Mahal Badalandabad in ‘Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj.’
Likewise, he has starred as Edward Pervertski in ‘Epic Movie’ (2007). He has appeared as Kumar Patel in the ‘Harold and Kumar’ movie sequel. In 2013, he appeared as Jordan Tichenor in ‘Triumph: The Lowell Pomerantz Story,’ as Motwani in ‘Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain’ and as Christian Van Burden in ‘Dementamania.’ Similarly, he has played the role of Gordy Gambhir in ‘The Sisterhood of Night’ (2014), of Peter Hemmings in ‘The Girl in the Photographs’ (2015), and as Nitin in ‘The Ashram’ (2018).
In the year 2017, he played as James in ‘Speech and Debate,’ as Rajeesh in ‘Once Upon a Time in Venice,’ and as Anuj in ‘The Layover.’
Television
Kal Penn has also appeared in the television field. He has appeared as Kumar Zimmerman in ‘Brookefield’ (1999) and as Max in ‘The Danny Comden Project’ (2006), both TV movies. He has appeared as Hunt in ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ (1999), as Prajeeb in ‘Sabrina the Teenage Witch’ (2000), as Buddy in ‘Spin City’ (2000), as Fez Boy in ‘Angel’ (2001), as Natarajan in ‘ER’ (2001), as Solomon Al-Ramahi in ‘NYPD Blue’ (2001), as Malek in ‘The Agency’ (2001), and as Dinesh in ‘All About the Andersons’ (2003).
Moreover, Kal had performed in other as well such as Steven in ‘Tru Calling’ (2003), as Fred in ‘The Lonely Island’ (2003) as Henry Chanoor in ‘Law and Order: Special Victims Unit’ (2007), as Ahmed Amar in ‘24’ (2007), like Kevin in ‘How I Met Your Mother’ (2011-2014), as the host in ‘The Big Brain Theory’ (2013), as Gil Bartis in ‘We Are Men’ (2013). Likewise, he has also had recurring roles in ‘Battle Creek’ (2015) as Detective Fontanelle White and in ‘The Big Picture with Kal Penn’ as the host.
He has also been a part of the main cast in series like ‘Mira, Royal Detective’ (2020) as Mikku, ‘Sunnyside’ (2019) as Garrett Modi, and as Seth Wright in ‘Designated Survivor’ (2016-2019).
Political Career
Kal Penn was an advocate during the former president Barack Obama’s presidential years. He was an Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs from 20 January 2009 till 20 August 2011 and left the post to continue his acting career.
Achievements
Kal Pen got nominated for MTV Movie Awards, Screen Actors Guild Award, and Teen Choice Award to portray Kumar Patel from the movie series ‘Harold and Kumar.’ He has won the Asian Excellence Award for Outstanding Actor award for his role of Nikhil Ganguli in ‘The Namesake.’
Net Worth
As of 2020, Kal Penn has earned himself a lot of name and fame, and money through his acting and political career, whose net worth is approximately $15 million.
