This A-Profiler we bring you Sunkrish Bala, an actor currently co-starring on ABC's Notes from the Underbelly. Find out how this actor got started with the help of Kal Penn (Harold and Kumar) and how his Grey's Anatomy role led to one of his most embarassing moments in his life.

What is your ethnicity?
I was born in Bombay, India. I'm a South Asian American.

As a child, did you know that you always wanted to get into acting? What inspired you to become an actor?
It's definitely something I had always done. I'd been doing community theater as long as I can remember, but I never considered it a viable career option. Growing up in the Silicon Valley during the tech boom of the 90s, where academia and the hard sciences were valued over everything else, it never really crossed my mind that I could pursue a career as an actor. It wasn't until I started applying to colleges as a senior in high school that I met Kal Penn (of Harold and Kumar fame). He helped me realize that my passion for the craft wasn't just as a "hobby." I wanted to do it for real.

In 2001 you helped found an Indian American theatre company called A'shore Productions in the San Francisco Bay Area to help educate the community about the South Asian community. Do you recall those early days with fond memories? Was the theatre company well received?
It was so great! I was still in high school, and running a whole theater company. I really don't know how anyone let me do that. The wonderful thing about A'shore was that we were giving a relatively new immigrant community a voice that they never had before. The South Asians in the San Francisco area were predominantly part of a very recent wave of migration, and so a sense of identity and community was just beginning to form. More than anything, A'shore was a platform for communication amongst a very young community.

You are now appearing on the hit ABC TV sitcom Notes from the Underbelly" as "Eric" who is one half of a couple of overly enthusiastic parents. How did you come across this role and was there an long audition process?
Every year, each network commissions dozens of pilots to be produced—most of which never make it onto the air. I read the script for "Notes" in April 2006 and thought it was hilarious and honest and very refreshing. I didn't think I had a shot at the part because Eric is probably a good ten years older than me. Being 22 and fresh out of college, the world of marriage and families and parenting was very far away. But something about him resonated with me. I understand obsessiveness, and I understand neurotic behavior. It clicked.

Your role on Notes from the Underbelly also allows you to rely less on your ethnicity as a punchline but more on your situation as over-the-top parents. Has that been refreshing for you as an actor of Indian descent? What is your take on Asian and South Asian Americans becoming more visible on television?
So refreshing. That was another big draw of the part for me. My identity is independent of my ethnicity, which is generally a very difficult thing to come by as an actor-of-color. Though the past three years have been a period of tremendous growth for Asian Americans on television - there are more of us than ever—we still have a long way to go in terms of the kinds of roles we are given. There are currently South Asians in prominent roles on every major network—ABC, NBC, CBS, and FOX—but about half of those parts play to established and inaccurate stereotypes. Is it better than nothing? I hope so.

Prior to Notes from the Underbelly, you may have been most noteably known as "the penis guy" from Grey's Anatomy. Have you been able to put that behind you now? Has being recognized as such lead to any embarassing situations in public?
I watched that episode of Grey's Anatomy alone with my mother when it originally aired. It was the most uncomfortable hour of my life. I think because nothing will match that original embarrassment, other people referring to me as the "penis guy" doesn't bother me as much. It's so funny, that episode aired more than two years ago, and people still talk to me about it. That's a good thing, right?

Is there anything you are currently working on outside of Notes from the Underbelly? Any TV or movies we can expect to see?
I have a couple of movies coming out in 2008. One is Albino Farm, which is a great little indie horror flick that I'm proud of. Look out for it in theaters soon!

You have traveled quite a bit. What is your favorite place you have visited so far? What is one place you would love to visit in your lifetime?
I spent some time in Malaysia for the first time this year. Talk about breathtaking! That place is beautiful! So green! I'd love to make a trip to North Africa soon. Yup! I just decided. North Africa is next. Morocco here I come.

What is your advice to other Asian and South Asian aspiring actors/actresses trying to get into televisions?
I think it's great that more and more of us are getting into the arts. It's an uphill battle, but one that is—for me—so rewarding. I guess my advice would be to come for the right reasons. Don't get into this line of work with the hope of becoming a huge star. I never hoped that, and I don't hope for it now. Do it because you love the work.

Photo: Russell Baer Photography

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This issue of A-Profiler is brought to you by Nelson Wong.
Special thanks to Sunkrish Bala, Anthony Turk, and Russell Baer Photography.

Photos used with permission.
Copyright retained by original copyright holder(s).