Summary
– Raj had multiple girlfriends throughout The Big Bang Theory, but none of them resulted in a happily ever after for him.
– Raj’s relationships often failed due to his clingy and obsessive behavior, and his inability to connect with women.
– Some of Raj’s notable relationships include Missy Cooper, Bernadette, Penny, Emily Sweeney, and Claire, with each having their own unique dynamics and outcomes.
Which Raj girlfriend on The Big Bang Theory was most suited for Kunal Nayyar’s astrophysicist is a difficult question, since he had surprisingly many despite being unable to talk to women at the start of the show. At the end of The Big Bang Theory‘s 12 seasons, all the couples had such promising futures. Amy and Sheldon had just won a Nobel Prize, Penny and Leonard were expecting, Bernadette and Howard were done creating their little family. Raj, however, was a different story, with the closest he got to a happily ever being when he invited Sarah Michelle Gellar as a date to the Nobel Prize ceremony.
Relationships have never been Raj’s strong point, which is surprising. Out of all the male characters Raj is by far the most romantic and endearing — on the surface, at least. He’s always loved love and yet his relationships all blew up in flames. Maybe Raj wasn’t the catch so many viewers saw him to be. After all, he was extremely clingy, obsessive, and was a little bit too comfortable showing his dog physical affection. Despite this, Raj Koothrappali had many girlfriends throughout TBBT. Sadly, Raj never got his happily ever after by the end of The Big Bang Theory — despite having no shortage of chances.
14 Missy (Courtney Henggeler)
Raj’s Unrequited Crush On Sheldon’s Sister
While she wasn’t technically one of the Raj girlfriend Big Bang Theory characters, Sheldon’s twin sister Missy Cooper was a mild love interest for the astrophysicist. Missy makes her first appearance on the show in season 1, episode 15, “The Porkchop Indeterminacy,” and Sheldon seems to have no idea that each of his friends has fallen hard for her.
Raj ends up taking an experimental medication to help him get over his anxiety over talking to women. He finally gets a chance to ask out Missy, who calls him a “cutie-pie,” but his medication begins to wear off and he leaves dejected.
It’s interesting that The Big Bang Theory didn’t pursue this potiential Raj relationship further, as Raj dating Sheldon’s sister could have led to some incredibly funny moments. However, it’s also for the best that they didn’t, given how Missy undergoes much character growth thanks to Young Sheldon.
13 Bernadette (Melissa Rauch)
Thankfully, Raj Never Dates Howard’s Wife
While Raj’s attraction to Missy could have led to some hilarious moments early on in The Big Bang Theory, the same can’t be said when it comes to Bernadette. Out of all the potential Raj girlfriend Big Bang Theory characters, Raj’s crush on Bernadette was by far the weirdest. Raj spends the entirety of The Big Bang Theory season 4 with an unrequited crush on Bernadette. He had Bollywood-style song and dance fantasies, plenty of daydreams, and even wrote poems about his feelings for Bernadette.
She doesn’t become one of Raj’s girlfriends, and the entire arc culminates with Bernadette giving Raj a rather stern talking-to.
Of course, this is hugely awkward, as Bernadette was with his best friend Howard. Howard does find out about Raj’s feelings, as does Bernadette. Thankfully, she doesn’t become one of Raj’s girlfriends, and the entire arc culminates with Bernadette giving Raj a rather stern talking-to.
Having Bernadette cheat on Howard or leave him for Raj would have likely been a terrible decision for The Big Bang Theory. It would have led to many moments which, at best, were too dark for the show. The other option would be Howard somehow forgiving Raj and Bernadette for the sake of continuity of the show, which simply wouldn’t have seemed plausible.
12 Penny (Kaley Cuoco)
Raj And Penny Hooking Up Was A Big Bang Theory Fakeout
Another series regular who technically never becomes Raj’s girlfriend in Big Bang Theory but still has a romantic link to him is Penny.Penny ends up having a one-night stand with Raj in the season 4 finale — sort of. It’s no secret that all the guys, save for Sheldon, have something of a crush on Penny. Of course, she and Leonard end up being endgame, but there is a slight bump in the road when it appears she and Raj had a fling.
With Leonard dating Raj’s sister Priya, neither Raj nor Penny seems to be all too happy with them, and a night of too much wine ends up seeing the pair romantically entangled. The guilt both feel becomes a plot-arc throughout much of The Big Bang Theory, and many were relieved when it emerged that — despite waking up together — they never actually did the deed.
11 Elizabeth (Judy Greer)
Raj Allows Himself To Be Seduced
One of the funniest Big Bang Theory characters who could have made a good Raj girlfriend if they’d stayed on the show longer is Dr. Elizabeth Plimpton. Played by TV and film actress Judy Greer, Dr. Plimpton is Sheldon’s personal guest as she’s a cosmological physicist being considered for a position at the California Institute of Technology. Sheldon and Leonard are taken by her intellect, as she wrote a book both of them consider to be groundbreaking, but she also reveals herself to be a nymphomaniac.
She successfully seduces Leonard, and then tries to rope Howard and Raj into a four-way with them. Frightened, Raj creates an escape plan for Leonard and Howard, but then gives in to Dr. Plimpton’s advances once they leave.
While Plimpton had no interest in a relationship with Raj, her appearance on the show and their few interactions were incredibly memorable. Judy Greer is, of course, a seasoned comic actor, and so Plimpton stole the show in almost every scene. Especially given that Raj had trouble speaking to women at the point she appeared on the show, having Raj and Plimpton date for a few episodes (or even seasons) would probably led to some incredibly entertaining moments.
10 Emily (Katie Leclerc)
The Girlfriend Who Used Raj For His Money
Raj was involved with two different Emilys throughout The Big Bang Theory. He dated this Emily in season 5 after being introduced by Penny. Emily and Penny met at the gym and what makes her so special to Raj is that she’s deaf. Due to Raj’s selective mutism at this time, dating someone who couldn’t actually hear him helped him open up and relax. Sadly, Raj went too hard too early, and basically told her he loved her immediately.
It didn’t take long to figure out that this Raj girlfriend
Big Bang Theory
character was totally using Raj for his riches.
In the meantime, he also paid off her credit card bills, bought her jewelry, and even leased her a new car. It didn’t take long to figure out that this one of Raj’s girlfriends in the Big Bang Theory was more interest in Raj’s money than she was Raj. To make matters worse, when Raj’s dad cut him off financially, Emily seemed totally uninterested in Raj and the two broke it off (after being verbally attacked by Penny and Howard, of course).
This Emily was definitely an interesting character, and her appearance made for a memorable episode, but it’s doubtful she would have had much longevity if she stuck around a little while longer. Aside from the obvious fact that using Raj for his money makes her incredibly unlikable, the way The Big Bang Theory handled her hearing difficulties led to some moments that definitely haven’t aged well.
9 Lakshmi (Chriselle Almeida)
Raj’s Arranged Marriage Was Problematic
Viewers met the Big Bang Theory Raj girlfriend Lakshmi in the fifth season after Raj’s parents set them up on a blind date. Raj becomes excited about Lakshmi and the possibility of an arranged marriage because of her beauty and her connection with his family, but that comes to a halt when he finds out she was a lesbian and using him as a way to hide her sexuality from her family.
The only reason Lakshmi thought an arranged marriage with Raj would have worked is that she thought Raj was also gay. While that couldn’t be farther from the truth, Raj was considering marrying her just to say he was married — even though there was no physical connection between them. All in all, it turned out to be one of the many TBBT Raj storylines that made no sense.
That’s not to say that Lakshmi isn’t an interesting character, either. It’s just that her whole plot arc and the situation she met Raj in didn’t seem to fit the tone of the rest of The Big Bang Theory. They’re also one of the moments in the show that hasn’t aged particularly well, which is probably a sign that Lakshmi being a single-appearance character is for the best.
