Lily Singh confronts cultural taboos surrounding sex positivity in her latest movie Doin It, slated to release on Sept. 19.
The raunchy comedy marks the comedian’s first time ever acting in a leading role. Best known for her YouTube stardom and A Little Late with Lily Singh, she stars as a 30-year-old engineer and part-time high school substitute teacher who is tasked with teaching sex education. It’s a task she finds especially difficult considering she’s never had sex herself.
Singh expressed her excitement about the South Asian representation in the film. The Indian-Canadian star, who made history in 2019 as the first person of Indian descent to host an American late-night show, emphasized that advancing representation has always been important to her. She wrote in a statement to Deadline she hoped the movie will resonate with women from that community.
“I’ve always wanted to tell stories that break boundaries and bring joy. Doin’ It does both. We laughed our asses off making it, and I can’t wait for audiences to see a comedy that puts brown girls, awkward moments, and cultural taboos front and center,” she said.
Singh co-wrote and co-produced the film alongside Neel Patel and writer-director Sarah Zandieh. The cast includes Stephanie Beatriz, Utkarsh Ambudkar and Sabrina Jeeles.
“I am so proud, because I have never seen anything like it. I know this sounds cliché, but if I had seen this movie when I was younger, I really think I would’ve avoided a lot of my trauma and confusion in my life,” she said to Elle.
Singh’s character Maya comes from a conservative Indian family, an experience she could relate to. She explained how making the film was a challenge, but one she wanted to overcome. She explained to Screen Rant she never “got the talk, even saying the word ‘sex’ stressed me out.”
AURA Entertainment acquired the rights to Singh’s film. The movie first debuted in March 2024 at SXSW Festival.
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