Negin Farsad

Negin Farsad (; born March 24, 1978) is an Iranian-American comedian, actress, writer, and filmmaker based in New York City. Early life and education Farsad was born in 1978 in New Haven, Connecticut, to an Iranian American Muslim family, and she was raised in the Southern California resort community of Palm Springs. With aspirations for a career in politics, she attended Cornell University and majored in government, as well as theater arts. She moved to New York City to attend Columbia University for grad school, earning a master's degree in race relations from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and a master's degree with an emphasis on urban management from the School of International and Public Affairs. She began working for New York City as a policy advisor to the New York City Campaign Finance Board. After more than a year in her role as a policy advisor, Farsad decided to leave her job with the city and pursue a career in comedy. She created her own production company, Vaguely Qualified Productions and committed herself full-time to her creative endeavors. Career Her comedy routines often feature her views on politics, sex and her experiences navigating the cultural dynamics of her Iranian-born family. In 2012 the Huffington Post named her on their "53 Of Our Favorite Female Comedians" article. She was also selected as a TED Fellow and gave a TED Talk in 2016 and 2017 for her work in social justice comedy.