Back to The Bluff after 'Big Bang' break

By Natalie Wheeler Staff Writer wheelern12@up.edu

Kunal Nayyar, the actor who plays Rajesh Koothrappali, Ph.D., on CBS' "The Big Bang Theory," was quiet for a moment when he first glanced in the empty Mago Hunt theatre on Friday. It had been eight years since he stepped foot inside the 300-seat theatre he once frequented daily.

"Oh wow," he said. "It is so strange to be back."

Since his graduation in 2003 with a B.A. in business and minor in theatre, Nayyar went to graduate school for acting, performed in London with the Royal Shakespeare Company and was cast for his first ever pilot for a show called "The Big Bang Theory."

Now in his 5th season, Nayyar has catapulted to stardom on "Big Bang" playing the awkward Indian physicist who cannot talk to women while sober.

In real life, Nayyar is much more talkative than his nervous character, something he often has to clarify for people.

"People will be like, ‘Oh good for you, you're talking!' and I'm like ‘You know I'm not Raj, right?" he said. "I'm really cool."

Although Nayyar may not have a problem talking to women – he is engaged to Miss India, after all – he does find similarities to Raj in his freshman year college self.

"I really did talk like him when I first came here," he said. "I didn't know what I was doing. One time I wore brown slacks, a white shirt and red tie to a college party," Nayyar said.

Nayyar came to UP at the age of 18 after living in Delhi, India most of his life. He returned to the University to visit with theatre students, alumni and prospective freshman, as well as to discuss setting up some possible scholarships. He also appeared at a free Q and A with students in Buckley Center auditorium on Thursday night.

During the event, Nayyar spoke about his success, failures and life in Hollywood. He said he hoped, if anything, he conveyed a sense of humility to students.

"I wanted students to see that I'm just a normal guy who worked really hard and got really lucky," Nayyar said. "I really wanted to show them that no matter who you are, it's important to be humble. I probably should have used less bad words though."

Nayyar realized the significance of humility when he was a freshman at UP and he witnessed the arrogance of a few senior theatre students.

After one senior snapped at him for asking a question about technique, he remembers telling himself he would never be that way.

"I was so horrified because this person was a really cool person in the theatre," Nayyar said. "I remember telling myself I would never talk like that to anyone, because you never know how one little thing you say can make someone feel."

Freshman Sarah Weedin, who attended the Q and A on Thursday night, said she was surprised at how friendly Nayyar was.

"He's a lot more energetic and open and welcoming than I expected," Weedin said.

Senior Joe Haggberg also attended the event on Thursday night. He classifies himself as a huge fan of Nayyar's show and enjoyed hearing him speak in real life, sans character.

"He seemed like a very down- to- earth person," he said. "He's a good role model for being humble and taking opportunities."

According to Gwynn Klobes, director of professional development and Nayyar's adviser for his four years at UP, Nayyar had been trying to visit UP for several years, but only recently found time with his demanding shooting schedule.

"It was wonderful to see him," Klobes said. "He really is the same person, and he's connected to the people who are here."

In addition to appearing on "Big Bang," the UP graduate is working on the animated film "Ice Age 4" and another untitled movie, and is producing a reality show called "Nice Guys Finish First." He hopes to also write a TV pilot and appear in a Bollywood movie.

Even with his busy life in Hollywood, Nayyar feels he has deep roots at UP, where he claims he was not very good at acting at first.

As he shivered through the blustery November days at UP – "I'm so cold, I seriously can't get warm" – he reminisced about where he spent his first four years as an adult.

"I miss the microbrew beer, the rain, the changing colors of season, the people, my emo phase a little bit…"

Kunal Nayyar

Quotables:

On touring colleges in Portland:

"I visited Reed and just said ‘I cannot do this.' Everyone's just so naked."

On moving from India to America:

"You go to the grocery store and see 25 types of bread. Like multi-grain or 5-grain, what is that? It made me aggravated."

On Howard Hall:

"There's definitely like some creepy stuff that happens there."

On meeting Lil John:

"I texted him the next morning saying like it was nice to meet you or whatever and he texted me back ‘Yeyahhh.'"

On Patrick Stewart teaching him rugby:

"I couldn't concentrate because of his head. It's so big, dude."

On Emmy night:

"At the end of the night at the Emmys, there's about 1,000 people waiting for their limos, clutching their Emmys and like passed out. Everyone's so human when they're smashed."

On Paparazzi:

"I just feel like giving them a lecture about life."

On "Portlandia":

"What's that?"