Aziz Ansari was born in Columbia, South Carolina, to Fatima, a medical office worker, and Shoukath, a gastroenterologist. His family is from Tamil Nadu, India. He graduated from NYU as a business major in 2004. He studied at the South Carolina governors school of science and mathematics. He previously attended the Bennetsville Academy which was in his home town.

Starting out in television, he later had bit parts in the films I Love You, Man (2009), Funny People (2009), and Get Him to the Greek (2010), among others, before co-starring in the comedy 30 Minutes or Less (2011).

他曾为《巴尔的摩太阳报》工作过12年。他创作的《凶杀：杀人街年记》（Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets）以及和同艾德·伯恩斯合作的《街角：城巷一年见闻》（The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood）。前者成为美国全国广播公司（NBC）剧集《凶杀：街头生涯》（Homicide: Life on the Street）的蓝本，西蒙担任该剧的编剧及制片人。而西蒙同HBO合作，又将后者改编成了迷你剧《街角》。西蒙最有名的作品就是HBO电视剧《火线》，他在其中担任首席编剧、执行制片以及播出负责人长达六年之久。他还将纪实文学《杀戮世代》（Generation Kill，又译为《伊拉克战争亲历记》）改编成了同名HBO迷你剧，并为该剧担任播出负责人。