In an interview with the Montreal Gazette, Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar spend quite a bit of time emphasizing that they're not very much like their Big Bang Theory characters of Howard and Rajesh.
Says Simon, "We have to come clean. We actually rely on real smart people to make us sound smart. Not only can I not help someone with the apps on their iPhones, but people look at me real strangely when I go to the Genius Bar at my local Apple Store and ask the staff if they can help me figure out how to get my email – because I have no idea how to do it. Sad to say, but, although I’m getting better, I’m pretty much totally inept on a computer.”
To which Kunal adds, “We’re both quite capable of saying some real dumb stuff. We're 100-per-cent different from our characters in real life. People do think we are really smart in real life because of the characters we play, but, fortunately, few ask me questions about quantum physics – which would fast prove otherwise."
Follow the link above to read the full interview.
RAJ & KUNAL
July 28, 2011
December 06, 2008
November 19, 2008
MEET KUNAL NAYYAR & RAJNESH KOOTHRAPPALI
Kunal Nayyar's role in THE BIG BANG THEORY is his first as a regular on a television series. He had a guest starring role on NCIS.
Nayyar is currently writing his first feature film, and his critically acclaimed play, "Cotton Candy," continues to run in New Delhi.
His theater acting credits include "Huck and Holden" at the Dahlia Theater in Los Angeles, for which Kunal was awarded best male lead in a play on the West Coast by the Garland Awards, and "Loves Labors Lost" at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford upon Avon, England.
Always a performer, Nayyar began acting in musicals and plays at a young age. After high school, he left India for the United States where he majored in business and took many acting classes at the University of Portland. In his senior year, he was nominated as the best actor in his play, "The Rose Tattoo," and was given an invitation to the American College Theater Festival (ACTF) to compete in an acting competition where he eventually won the Mark Twain Award for comic brilliance as well as a fellowship to the prestigious Sundance Theater Lab. He went on to receive his Masters in Fine Arts (MFA) from Temple University in Philadelphia.
Nayyar played badminton for his school team and competed at state level in the region of North India. He is also a fanatical fan of cricket. He is said to have a killer shoulder shimmy. According to Nayyar, wikipedia says his name means "one who sees beauty in everything" and it comes from a Himalayan bird known as the Painted Snipe.
He was born in London, England, and spent most of his younger years growing up in New Delhi, India. He currently resides in Los Angeles. Nayyar's birth date is April 30.
