We are in the midst of a romantic comedy renaissance (opens in new tab). Between the glut of new straight-to-streaming romantic comedies and the box office success of Crazy Rich Asians, the stage is set for an unprecedented revival of this beloved genre.

And who better to lead the charge into a new golden age of romantic comedy than Mindy Kaling (opens in new tab).

In person as on screen, Kaling exudes the essence of romantic comedy with her bubbly smile, bright eyes, and montage-worthy costumes. I had the pleasure of meeting the actress at an event to promote her partnership with DSW's Do Good campaign (opens in new tab). Kaling (opens in new tab) is exactly what you would imagine her to be. Warm and friendly, unassuming without being self-deprecating, and as easy to talk to as a friend you made at summer camp.

Above all, and most quintessentially a rom-com, she is pure and her charm is rooted in the absence of anything resembling pretense.

"I partnered with DSW even before I knew about the Do Good campaign because I loved DSW," she says, deftly mentioning the brand name repeatedly as she speaks. Most people would find such an answer rehearsed at best, false at worst, but Kaling is neither.

"Obviously, I get the opportunity to work with a lot of different companies," she adds with casual candor. But I really care about the people who follow me on social media, and I don't want them to see me partnering with something that I'm not actually using. So I was excited to work with [DSW]."

Kaling and I talked for a few minutes about DSW (opens in new tab), exchanging stories about visiting the mall store with her mother and how, as a young girl growing up in the lower middle class, she felt "fashionable" shopping there. I told this story for two reasons: first, to illustrate the remarkable sincerity behind the #sponcon-like language above. And second, to bring the conversation back to romance films.

Kaling has thought and written deeply about romantic comedies for years. From her hilarious and spot-on essay "The Type of Non-Existent Women in Romantic Comedies" in her first book, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (opens in new tab), to her news-making, off-the-cuff tweets (open in new tab), she has repeatedly proven her expertise on romantic comedies in general. When she shares an episode from her teenage years, when she went to the mall to buy affordable, fashionable shoes, one can't help but think of a bright, colorful flashback to the scene.

"Of course, it's always my first love," she says of the romantic comedy genre, her face lighting up. "You've Got Mail" (open in new tab) is a controversial film, but it's perfect. You can't go wrong with Nora Ephron."

She also says that "I've never seen anything like it.

She will get a chance to express that love through her tag team with the aforementioned Priyanka Chopra (open in new tab). This is a project that Chopra actually kicked off with a personal phone call.

"You know, she called me," Kaling says with an incredulous smile. She contacted my agent and said, "I'd like to talk to Mindy about an idea I have."

"She said, 'I'd like to talk to Mindy about an idea I have.'

The idea, says Kaling, was simple: she and Chopra would play relatives and the movie would be a comedy. Based on the concept that Chopra and Kaling came up with together, Kaling recruited Brooklyn Nine-Nine co-creator (open in new tab) Dan Guare to co-write the script. [He's] married to an Indian woman, so he has a window into Indian women's culture," says Kaling, who conceived of the film with her, in which Kaling and Chopra appear as cousins, one Indian American (Kaling) and the other born and raised in India (Chopra). She talks about Goua, who was the inspiration for the film.

"It's really fun to play our public personas, which couldn't be more different," Kaling says of writing for herself and Chopra.

"There's some overlap, like we both love fashion, but we come from very different worlds."

Kaling describes the film, which centers on a wedding in India that brings her character abroad, as "a fish out of water, an Indian-American story in India" waiting to be told.

"To finally get the chance to talk about the real differences I feel with my cousins, their assumptions about me being born in India, and what it feels like to be fully American and yet know that you are not white, It was one of the most fun things," she says.

"It's really, really fun to work on those kinds of cultural things."

Kaling stresses that the film, which is still in the process of being written, is still some time away, but she already speaks enthusiastically about her future co-star and on-screen cousin.

"Honestly, working with Priyankaar has been great. She gave me tickets to the Jonas Brothers, and I'm thrilled," says Kaling, beaming without a trace of sarcasm. She's fantastic. She called me and said, 'Do you want to go to the Jonas Brothers show in December? I'm 25 years older than the average fan, but I'd love to go. Yeah, absolutely."

Kaling's excitement escalates again when asked about early reports that Chopra might direct their as-yet-untitled marriage comedy (open in new tab).

"Oh my God, if Priyankaar wants to direct, I would be so happy," she said, her eyes widening with delight. 'I've never heard of such a rumor, but it sounds like a dream. I hope it's true. We are always trying to get women, especially women of color, to direct. So if she wants to direct, I would be very happy. I trust her very much, so that would be a pleasure."

Chopra's seat in the director's chair is perfectly in line with Kaling's vision for the future of romantic comedy, which she is delighted to see evolving more rapidly than ever in recent years.

"Romantic comedies used to be about a certain kind of couple--usually a white couple--falling in love, then breaking up, then finding each other again. What's been really great in the last couple of years is that we've gotten to see couples that we don't normally see," she said, adding that she has seen "Crazy Rich Asians," Netflix's "Always Be My Maybe," Kumail Nanjiani and Issa Rae's " Lovebirds" (opens in a new tab) as prime examples of the growing diversity of romantic comedies. 'Even in the last two years, that's the real difference I've seen. Having someone unconventional in the lead role is now considered bankable and exciting.

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