The Big Bang Theory Fans Are Divided On Who Raj Should Have Ended Up With
It's been three years (though the pandemic makes it feel longer) since "The Big Bang Theory," the long-running CBS sitcom from creator Chuck Lorre, aired its series finale. Yet fans still can't stop talking about the series and its ending. Not everyone is pleased with how the story wrapped up and how all their favorite characters ended their storylines. (Spoilers ahead.)
Perhaps the biggest question, or complaint, fans have is, why did Rajesh Koothrappali (Kunal Nayyar), the most romantic and lovelorn of the main characters, end up alone? Almost all the other characters ended up with their rightful partner — Amy (Mayim Bialik) and Sheldon (Jim Parsons) got married and Sheldon even appreciated his friends, Penny (Kaley Cuoco) and Leonard (Johnny Galecki) are married and expecting their first child at the end of the series, and Howard (Simon Helberg) and Bernadette (Melissa Rauch) are still raising their two children. But the one character who was most hopeful of finding love throughout the series ended up alone.
The showrunners are happy with that decision. "We just felt we didn't need to tie up everything in a bow. Their lives were still going on," showrunner Steve Holland told The Hollywood Reporter. "It felt OK to leave [Raj] still searching for love — and I believe that he ultimately will find it someday, but we didn't feel the need to have to show it." Lorre added, "I love the way it ended."
But that doesn't stop fans from expressing their desires for Raj, and speculating on who among the show's characters he should have ended up with.
There were many possibilities for Raj not to be alone
In a July 20, 2022, Reddit thread, u/LaRussa listed which "The Big Bang Theory" characters they thought should have ended up with whom — and did not limit themselves to Raj. They mixed everyone up (except Howard and Bernadette), leaving Sheldon alone, Amy with Bert (Brian Posehn), and Penny with Wil Wheaton (himself)! But their choice for Raj was Yvette the veterinarian (Tania Raymonde).
Some agreed among the 70+ comments, while others suggested Emily Sweeney, Sheldon's sister Missy, or his almost-wife Anu, who Raj decided at the last minute — at Howard's urging — not to follow to London. Fans clearly wanted something lasting for Raj. "Raj is honestly such a catch, he should've had no trouble getting in a relationship with someone once he was able to talk to women," u/ob1knob33 opined. Quite a few fans felt the #onetruepairing is Raj and Howard — who even had a big romantic gesture at the airport. "I was so hoping Raj would come out of the closet!" said u/rosie-broccoli.
But the writers liked the ending, as does Raj himself, Kunal Nayyar. "I find it quite poignant that the one character that believed in true love so much was the one who didn't, in the end, find it. It's beautiful!" Nayyar told Metro UK. Steve Holland also didn't feel Raj found the right person yet, telling TVLine, "As close as it was, [Anu] wasn't quite the perfect one for him — and we want Raj to end up with the perfect woman." We're sure Raj will find his ideal soon enough.