Highlights The sudden exit of Claire, Raj's love interest on The Big Bang Theory, shocked fans. Kunal Nayyar, who played Raj, believed that his character wouldn't have a serious girlfriend for a long time, despite what fans wanted for his character. Despite not finding love, Raj's character matured and focused more on his friendships in seasons 10, 11, and 12 of The Big Bang Theory, while still occasionally dating.

All the main characters on The Big Bang Theory are equally interesting, and they have a hilarious dynamic that made the show a hit for 12 seasons. While Leonard Hofstadter, Sheldon Cooper, and Penny are beloved, fans also always loved watching Raj Koothrappali spend time with his best friends.

Thanks to the fact that he played Raj for over a decade, Kunal Nayyar has one of the highest net worths of the TBBT cast. Nayyar's portrayal of Raj is pitch-perfect and has allowed him to be cast in many other projects. One of Raj's most famous personality traits is his awkwardness around the opposite sex. In season 9, he meets Alessandra Torresani's character Claire who makes a huge impact on his life. After the breakup, Raj is definitely a different person. Here's what happened to his storyline after this major relationship.

Why Did Raj's Love Interest Claire Exit The Big Bang Theory?

Raj and Claire begin dating in season 9 of The Big Bang Theory. They have a meet-cute at the beloved comic book shop and she wants his science advice since she's working on a children's book. Raj is torn between Claire and Laura Spencer's character Emily Sweeny. By season 10, Raj isn't dating anyone at all.

No official reason seems to have been given as to why Claire was suddenly gone from The Big Bang Theory. It's possible that there was no plan in place for Raj to settle down at the end of the sitcom.

Alessandra Torresani didn't explain why she was only on The Big Bang Theory for a brief amount of time in any interviews. It seems that she was just meant to be a minor character.

In 2010, Kunal Nayyar talked about Raj in an interview with Page Six, and he shared some interesting insights. As he explained, it made sense to him that his character wouldn't have a serious girlfriend for a prolonged period of time.

When a fan asked about Raj's love life, Nayyar said of his character, "I don't know if he'll actually ever find love. Plus, I wonder, what's funnier than seeing these guys fail? That's the essence of comedy.

I think they'll succeed at being friends, but not with women."

Nayyar also mentioned in his Page Six interview that in his opinion, Raj would continue to have a hard time chatting with potential love interests. The actor said, "I don't think we'll ever see him get over it, which I always wondered about in the beginning. 'How will we continue to do this,' but the writers are amazing."

What Happened To Raj's The Big Bang Theory Storyline After Claire Left?

Even though it was sad to watch Raj and Claire split up on The Big Bang Theory, some might say that she was right to end the relationship.

As fans remember, Claire explains to Raj that she doesn't like some parts of his personality and thinks that he has become conceited. She also doesn't think that she can see herself in a long-term partnership with him.

Since every TV character needs to change over the course of the show, it seems that Claire might have helped Raj see that he has some things to work on.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter before season 5 of The Big Bang Theory premiered, Kunal Nayyar talked about Raj's dating life.

From his perspective, the writers had to strike a fine balance between Raj still making viewers laugh but also being able to act more maturely.

The actor said, "Do I hope that Raj becomes this womanizing player who can talk to women all the time? No, I hope that he continues to grow. I really think if you take away a character's obstacles then there's no comedy. Comedy is really based on overcoming obstacles and if you take away that obstacle, my fear is that [Raj] would lose his funny."

After Claire was out of Raj's life, his storyline on The Big Bang Theory did become more mature and adult. In season 10, Raj was there for Simon Helberg's character Howard when he was getting ready to welcome a baby with Melissa Rauch's character Bernadette.

Fans could never forget the season 10 The Big Bang Theory episode "The Emotion Detection Automation" because Raj talks to the women he has dated and finds out why they didn't want to be with him anymore. But while this conversation gives him some important information, his character arc in seasons 10, 11 and 12 is mostly focused on his friendships. While he does date from time to time, he doesn't find anyone special.

The Big Bang Theory fans weren't thrilled about Raj and Claire not ending up together.

There are quite a few Reddit threads devoted to what a great character Claire was.

Redditor @FeelThePower999 wrote, "From her very first appearance in the 14th episode of season 9, I felt that she was the right match for Raj." They continued that "Claire could be quite wry at times, and make a good foil for Amy, especially in the later seasons as Amy had loosened up from her season 4 self."

In another Reddit thread, Redditor @Glittering-Prompt722 wrote, "I would be ok with the fact that raj ends alone if the character was ok with it, but raj has so many emotional scenes talking about how much he wants to find love and get married, It breaks my heart to know that we didn't see him doing any of these things.

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Instead of getting married or at least finding his one true love in The Big Bang Theory series finale, Raj has a very different plotline. He and Sarah Michelle Gellar chat on a plane in the last episode "The Stockholm Syndrome." The actress goes with Raj to the Nobel Peace Prize event. While fans would have loved to see Raj in a different place, they definitely hope that in the future, the character meets his soulmate.