Mindy Kaling has yet to appear on-screen in Never Have I Ever, the Netflix comedy series she co-created with Lang Fisher, but there is a detail that connects season 2 of the show with her former work on The Mindy Project. After debuting on Fox in September 2012, The Mindy Project finished its run on Hulu in 2017. The series starred Kaling as Dr. Mindy Lahiri, an OB/GYN who deals with her relationship shortcomings and desire to live a rom-com worthy life. Now, Kaling is involved in Never Have I Ever as a co-creator as well as executive producer, and while she doesn't make an appearance in season 2, a wardrobe item from The Mindy Project does.
With its newly released second season, the coming-of-age comedy on Netflix stars Maitreyi Ramakrishnan as Devi, an Indian-American high school student. Wrestling with grief in the aftermath of her father's death, Devi struggles with her relationships and her identity as she seeks to become "cool." At the heart of her struggles are her feelings for high school heartthrob Paxton (Darren Barnet), and these feelings become entangled in a love triangle in season 2 upon Devi's kiss with Ben (Jaren Lewison), her academic archrival, at the end of season 1.
As Devi's drama plays out during the show, one of Mindy's sweaters from The Mindy Project can be seen on another character. Jonah Sharpe (Dino Petrera), a classmate of Devi's who comes out as gay and is a friend to Fabiola (Lee Rodriguez) as she grapples with her sexuality, can be seen wearing a pink and blue leopard-print sweater in an episode of Never Have I Ever's second season. It turns out that Mindy's character wore that same one in The Mindy Project (via Bustle). On July 17, Petrera posted a side-by-side image on social media of himself and Kaling both in character donning the sweater, saying, "Can you even handle this hand-me-down?" in the caption along with the starry-eyed emoji.
Kaling was a fan of the Never Have I Ever connection to The Mindy Project, commenting, "This is my favorite post on the Instagram platform" on Petrera's post and sharing it on her Instagram story with more details. "We all love the dreamy scene stealer @dinopetrera as Jonah on @neverhaveiever. But did you know he wore a Mindy Lahiri sweater @salvadorperezcostumes styled me in from season 6?" she wrote as the text. Costume designer Salvador Perez also shared the post and offered some behind-the-scenes scoop. Interestingly, it seemed that Kaling hadn't made the connection at first when Perez sent her a picture of the wardrobe choice for Jonah during production, but Perez had reminded her that it was hers from the archives.
Fashion is explored in various ways for different characters in Never Have I Ever, from Eleanor (Ramona Young)'s elaborate outfits to the traditional Indian ensembles worn by Devi and her family for special occasions. Paxton's younger sister Rebecca, played by Lily D. Moore, works to get into a fashion design program and enlists Devi as a model during an episode in the show's first season. Jonah wears many eye-catching clothing pieces throughout Never Have I Ever, though perhaps the Kaling-approved animal sweater is now his most iconic.