by Saumya Bhutani – Follow @SaumyaNotSonia
This past election cycle and the presidency of Donald Trump have brought a myriad of issues to the forefront of public discourse. While many celebrities have been vocal in fighting for what they believe is right, everyone’s favorite talented brown boy Utkarsh Ambudkar of “Pitch Perfect” and “The Mindy Project” fame, stands out from the crowd. Here are 10 times our crush on him grew exponentially because of his commitment to social justice.
1. When he recognized the importance of voting and encouraged all his followers to do the same, regardless of political leanings.
2. When he was not afraid to publicly and unabashedly support Hillary Clinton.
3. And took that support a step further by campaigning for her.
4. When he acknowledged the denial and pain felt by all of us after the election.
5. But then shortly thereafter made sure to promote love and hope during these trying times by releasing his beautiful music video, “We Go High.”
6. When he shared this video of his mom at the Women’s March in Washington, D.C.
Guess we know where he gets his commitment to activism from!
7. When he summoned this Hollywood South Asian dream team of Hari Kondabolu, Ravi Patel, Heems, Aparna Nancherla, Manish Dayal, and more to take action against the detainment of an Indian-American woman by Bel Air police in Los Angeles.
.@harikondabolu @HIMANSHU @TheManishDayal @Janina @pejvahdat @rizmc @sakinajaff @aparnapkin @showmetheravi https://t.co/lpfbwxAfp5
— Utkarsh Ambudkar (@UTKtheINC) January 28, 2017
8. When he took a stand against Uber for supporting Trump and taking advantage of the protests against the Muslim travel ban, and did so with sass and wit.
9. When he shared his identity and roots in order to show support and solidarity during the Muslim travel ban.
10. Finally, and most importantly, we loved Utkarsh the most when he challenged his peers to positively influence fans and use their celebrity power to inspire change, like he does regularly.
Hey. public figures with 70m followers who refuse to advocate for civil rights because it’s “off-brand” or you aren’t qualified, GTFOH.
— Utkarsh Ambudkar (@UTKtheINC) January 29, 2017
you aren’t qualified to sell liquor or perfume. But you ARE qualified to inspire the millions of people who listen to you and look up to you
— Utkarsh Ambudkar (@UTKtheINC) January 29, 2017