Did BJ Novak and Mindy Kaling date? Relationship explored as Novak pays tribute to Kaling after she gets her Hollywood Walk of Fame star

Actor and comedian BJ Novak spoke highly of actress and former co-star Mindy Kaling after she was awarded a star on the prestigious Hollywood Walk of Fame on Tuesday, February 18, 2025. In his speech, Novak paid tribute and sometimes roasted his longtime friend and colleague.

The actor spoke about how beautifully Mindy Kaling handled fame in her life and joked:

"Mindy respects and understands [fame] in a very intuitive way because, in addition to being a brilliant and wildly successful showrunner, an incredible mother of three, a deep and caring daughter and friend and mentor to so many, Mindy is also in her spare time, I assure you, very superficial."

Novak continued:

"You'd be on the walk of talent if they had one. You'd be on the walk of friendship. You'd be on the walk of compassionate parenthood, but let's face it, all of these would be terrible field trips, so here you are instead, very deservedly, a person who means so much to so many on the Hollywood Walk of Fame."

Novak and Kaling first met on the sets of the popular sitcom The Office US (2005-2013). The duo portrayed the characters Ryan Howard and Kelly Kapoor, respectively, for nine seasons alongside writing several episodes on the show.

In a 2012 interview with Vulture, Mindy Kaling and BJ Novak confirmed that they "dated on and off for a couple of years." Kaling explained that they fell in love while working together in the writers' room. After their relationship, the duo remained "best friends" and shared "the kind of friendship you have when you are embedded with someone."

In a 2014 interview on The Howard Stern Show, Kaling opened up about her breakup with BJ Novak, claiming that he broke her heart when they were both 24 years old. The actress added that the breakup left her "sad" and "not angry."

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"We didn't know" - When BJ Novak spoke about his relationship with Mindy Kaling

BJ Novak and Mindy Kaling at the 2019 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Radhika Jones (Image via Getty)

In a 2012 interview with The Vulture, BJ Novak spoke about his on-and-off relationship with Mindy Kaling. He said:

"We were never really dating. We were never really not dating. We didn't know. No one knew. All you'd know for sure is that you'd always find one of us next to the other, even if we weren't getting along."

Novak also explained how his off-screen relationship with Kaling mirrored their character Ryan and Kelly's relationship on The Office. The two characters also share an on-and-off dynamic and dated multiple times during various seasons.

In a 2015 interview with InStyle, Mindy Kaling shared similar thoughts about their dynamic. She said:

"He is not my boyfriend, but he is not my best friend. I guess you could describe our relationship as a 'romantically charged camaraderie with loud arguments,' but I don't think Facebook would accept this as a new status."

Over the years, BJ Novak and Mindy Kaling have remained friends and worked on multiple projects together. After The Office, BJ Novak appeared on Kaling's eponymous comedy series, The Mindy Project (2012-2017). In the series, Novak played Jamie, one of Mindy's ex-boyfriends, and served as a consulting producer.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, BJ Novak explained that his dynamic with Mindy Kaling on the show was "definitely inspired by their relationship."

"Whenever we date anyone else, I think there's a period where the person is very skeptical of our friendship: 'Everyone seems to think you two might be a couple, and I don't mean to get in the way. Are you sure you're not dating? Are you sure you're not going to end up dating?" Novak said.

Novak and Kaling also share an inside joke inspired by The Office and call each other "soup snakes." The term is a reference to the iconic character of Michael Scott (Steve Carrell) in The Office, who once misread "soul mates" as "soup snakes" and referred to his love interest, Holly, by the same term.

In a 2014 interview with The Howard Stern Show, Mindy Kaling revealed that she was "sad" but not "angry" about her breakup with BJ Novak. She said she would have agreed to marry him if he asked her back when they were 24. However, Kaling confirmed that she is "not holding a candle for B.J. anymore," and they are not together.

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After BJ Novak applauded Mindy Kaling for her handling of fame at her ceremony on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the actress returned the love by calling him "an important and integral part of her family." Novak is also the godfather of Kaling's first two children.