It wasn’t supposed to be like this for Broti Gupta. This comedy thing. It wasn’t supposed to be happening at all. She grew up the daughter of a doctor and there was an expectation she’d follow the same path. But as a college student, she just couldn’t shake the strong interest in comedy that led her down a different path entirely, away from med school and toward places like the New Yorker, McSweeney’s, and Second City. Today, she’s a writer for The Simpsons and a rising star in comedy circles.

One indication that her heart was not in medicine? A visit to a college counselor who challenged Broti to not try to make him laugh for one entire appointment. It’s a challenge she did not accept. For Broti Gupta, the laughs were not just a way of coping with some mental health issues but also a way of approaching life itself.

Follow Broti Gupta on Twitter @BrotiGupta. Listen to and support Broti's podcast with Dylan Gelula, Lecture Hall, on Patreon.

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