He’s definitely had a negative impact on Indian people and anyone who’s brown lol. Growing up whenever kids encountered an Indian student, they’d tried to do Apu’s accent and catchphrase or ask them to do. It was definitely insulting, and in addition to the voice The Simpson also played into the “500 children Indian family” stereotype.
But outside of that, growing up I never associated Apu’s greed and workaholicism with Indians, and I don’t know if there’s a stereotype of Indians being cheap and greedy.
But funnily enough, I’ve always associated his greed with business owners in general even when I was a kid. As an immigrant myself, I also saw his workaholic personality “relatable.” Seeing my parents work all the time, then learning it was literally 24 hours a day as soon as they arrived in the states, made me see Apu as a tragic figure. Of course it’s often played up for laughs (him being shot and robbed many times and only worrying about work, him only thinking about work above all else), but I saw that in my parents as well. Even when they were struggling to get out of bed due to sickness or walk because they got a foot injury, they had to soldier on because they were deathly afraid of getting fired and not being able to feed us. I didn’t see Apu as a role model or anything; I just saw him as a composite of my parents and many immigrants taken to the extreme.
All in all, I wouldn’t want him back in his former form because it affects Indians (and anyone with dark skin because Americans are idiots) negatively while the other stereotypical characters don’t really affect culture (e.g. Willy, Krusty). But rewatching the simpsons, I just thought it’s interesting that my experience with him was probably more than what the creators intended. Given the current state of the show, I don’t think they can bring him back in any meaningful way while keeping him funny. It’s best he’s retired, and I hope it’s the first step for the whole show to get retired.
