Kunal Nayyar - wikipedia Kunal Nayyar Kunal Nayyar Nayyar at the 2017 San Diego Comic - Con ( 1981 - 04 - 30 ) 30 April 1981 ( age 36 ) Hounslow, London, UK Residence Los Angeles, California, U.S.A Alma mater Temple University University of Portland Occupation Actor Years active 2004 -- present Spouse ( s ) Neha Kapur ( m. 2011 ) Kunal Nayyar ( / kʊˌnɑːl ˈnaɪər / ; born 30 April 1981 ) is an Indian - American actor known for his role as Rajesh Koothrappali in the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory. According to Forbes, Nayyar was third on the list of World 's Highest - Paid TV Actors for 2015 with earnings of US $20 million after The Big Bang Theory. Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 4 Filmography 4.1 Film 4.2 Television 4.3 Theatre 5 Awards 6 References 7 External links Early life Nayyar was born in Hounslow, London to a Punjabi family and was brought up in New Delhi, India. He attended St Columba 's School in New Delhi, where he played badminton for the school team. His parents live in New Delhi. In 1999, Nayyar moved to the United States to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Portland, Oregon. Working on his degree, he started taking acting classes and appeared in several school plays. After participating in the American College Theater Festival, Nayyar decided to become a professional actor. He then attended Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he received a Master of Fine Arts in Acting. Career Nayyar on a tour with the rest of The Big Bang Theory cast in 2008 After graduating, Nayyar found work doing American television ads and plays on the London stage. He first gained attention in the US for his role in the West Coast production of Rajiv Joseph 's 2006 play Huck & Holden, where he portrayed an Indian exchange student anxious to experience American culture before returning home. In 2006, Nayyar teamed up with Arun Das to write the play Cotton Candy, which premiered in New Delhi to positive reviews. Nayyar made a guest appearance on the CBS drama NCIS in the episode `` Suspicion '' ( season four, episode 12 ), in which he played Youssef Zidan, an Iraqi terrorist. Nayyar 's agent heard about a role for a scientist in an upcoming CBS pilot and encouraged him to audition for the part. This led to his casting in the sitcom The Big Bang Theory, where he plays astrophysicist Rajesh Koothrappali. In 2011, he co-hosted the Tribute to Nerds show with co-star Simon Helberg at the comedy festival Just for Laughs. In 2012, Nayyar voiced Gupta in Ice Age : Continental Drift. That same year, he completed the shooting of his first film, Dr. Cabbie, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The film was produced by Bollywood actor Salman Khan. From 5 May to 29 June 2015, Nayyar performed in an off - Broadway production, The Spoils, written by and starring actor Jesse Eisenberg. Nayyar played Kalyan, a Nepalese student and roommate of the protagonist Ben, played by Eisenberg. The production transferred to London 's West End in 2016. In September 2015, Nayyar published a book about his career journey, Yes, My Accent is Real. He then voiced Guy Diamond in DreamWorks ' animated movie Trolls ( 2016 ). Personal life Nayyar married Miss India 2006 winner, Neha Kapur, in December 2011. They live in Los Angeles. Filmography Film Year Film Role Director ( s ) Notes S.C.I.E.N.C.E Pizza Man Jordan Noce 2012 Ice Age : Continental Drift Gupta Steve Martino & Mike Thurmeier Voice 2014 The Scribbler Karim John Suits 2014 Dr. Cabbie Tony Jean - François Pouliot 2015 Consumed Serge Negani Daryl Wein 2016 Trolls Guy Diamond Walt Dohrn & Mike Mitchell Voice Television Year Series Role Notes 2007 NCIS Youssef Zidan Uncredited Episode : `` Suspicion '' 2007 -- present The Big Bang Theory Rajesh Koothrappali Main role The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson Rajesh Koothrappali 2013 -- 2016 Sanjay and Craig Vijay ( voice ) Main role 2013 -- 14 Sullivan & Son Sanjay / Neal Episode : `` Ladies Night '', `` Sexual Healing '' 2015 The Late Late Show host 25 -- 27 February 2015 The Mindy Project Sendhil Episode : `` While I Was Sleeping '' 2016 Ice Age : The Great Egg - Scapade Gupta ( cameo / flashback ) TV special Theatre Year Title Role Notes 2006 Huck and Holden Navin Dahlia Theater, Los Angeles, United States 2006 Love 's Labour 's Lost Other Parts Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford upon Avon, United Kingdom 2006 Love 's Labour 's Lost Other Parts Shakespeare Theatre Company, Lansburgh Theatre, Washington, DC, United States 2015 The Spoils Kalyan The New Group at The Pershing Square Signature Center, New York, United States 2016 The Spoils Kalyan Trafalgar Studios, London Awards Year Award Title Result 2006 Garland Award Best Male Lead in a Play on the West Coast Huck and Holden Won 2012 Screen Actors Guild Award Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series The Big Bang Theory Nominated 2013 Nominated 2014 Nominated 2015 Nominated 2016 Nominated References Jump up ^ `` The World 's Highest - Paid TV Actors ''. ^ Jump up to : Banerjee, Sudeshna ( 7 July 2008 ). `` Mr Big Bang ''. The Telegraph. Retrieved 21 October 2011. ^ Jump up to : Nayyar, Kunal ( 2015 ). Yes, My Accent Is Real : And Some Other Things I Have n't Told You. Atria Books. ISBN 978 - 1476761824. Jump up ^ Kapoor, Kritika ( 25 June 2010 ). `` I 'd rather do social movies : Kunal Nayyar ''. Daily News and Analysis. Retrieved 21 October 2011. Jump up ^ Ahmed, Sana ( 28 June 2008 ). `` Going places ''. The Hindu. Retrieved 21 October 2011. Jump up ^ Successful Actors Talk About Their Training. backstage.com. Retrieved on 2012 - 11 - 17. ^ Jump up to : `` Making it as a nerd ''. Rediff. 19 November 2007. Retrieved 21 October 2011. Jump up ^ Sahgal, Natasha ( 16 September 2009 ). `` Geek God ''. Indian Express. Retrieved 21 October 2011. Jump up ^ Chander, Romesh ( 16 June 2006 ). `` Staging the fluff of dreams ''. The Hindu. Retrieved 21 October 2011. Jump up ^ D'Arminio, Aubry ( 29 March 2016 ). `` 7 NCIS Guests Who Went on to Become Stars ( PHOTOS ) ''. tvinsider.com. Retrieved 5 May 2016. Jump up ^ Wyatt, Nelson ( 26 July 2011 ). `` ' Big Bang Theory ' stars say most people can relate to being nerds ''. Winnipeg Free Press. Archived from the original on 14 September 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2011. Jump up ^ Dr. Cabbie on IMDb Jump up ^ Brantley, Ben ( 2 June 2015 ). `` ' Review : ' The Spoils ' Stars Jesse Eisenberg as Narcissist ''. New York Times. Retrieved 16 June 2015. Jump up ^ `` The Talk, CBS ''. Retrieved 3 March 2012. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kunal Nayyar. Kunal Nayyar on IMDb VIAF : 91193332 LCCN : no2009114719 GND : 1034879669 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kunal_Nayyar&oldid=817168932 '' Categories : 1981 births Living people People from New Delhi British male actors of Indian descent Temple University alumni University of Portland alumni English people of Punjabi descent St. Columba 's School, Delhi alumni English people of Indian descent English expatriates in India Indian expatriates in the United States Male actors from London 21st - century Indian male actors Indian male film actors Indian male television actors Indian male stage actors People from Hammersmith Hidden categories : EngvarB from August 2016 Use dmy dates from July 2017 Articles with hCards Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Български Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Eesti Ελληνικά Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Français Galego 한국어 हिन्दी Italiano עברית Қазақша Latina Magyar മലയാളം Bahasa Melayu Nederlands 日本 語 ਪੰਜਾਬੀ Polski Português Русский Simple English Slovenčina Suomi Svenska தமிழ் ไทย Українська 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 26 December 2017, at 17 : 02. 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Question: who plays raj koothrappali on big bang theory
Answer: Kunal Nayyar