<P> Rajesh, who is normally called Raj or just by his surname Koothrappali, is from New Delhi, India . However, he despises Indian food, and his knowledge about Indian culture and Hinduism is often rebuked by Sheldon, who is seen to speak better Hindi than him . He was born into a wealthy family and has five siblings, one of whom is Priya, a former on - off girlfriend of Leonard . Raj is normally seen wearing a layered combination of a printed shirt and sweater vest under a track top - style windbreaker with khakis or cargo pants and skate shoes . Raj wore a red cap in the pilot episode, but has not worn any headgear on a regular basis for the rest of the series' run . Between seasons one and eleven, Raj styled his naturally curly hair with hair gel "while trying to blend in". </P> <P> Raj joins in playing Halo online and trading - card games with his friends, and has even claimed to have experienced gaming addiction in the past . It was revealed in "The Monster Isolation" that Raj did at least part of his higher education at the University of Cambridge, where he discovered his interest in astrophysics . </P> <P> While in general Raj is more patient with Sheldon than Leonard, Howard or Penny, Sheldon is completely oblivious to this, and even casually cuts him off as a friend on one occasion . </P> <P> Another recurring joke is his metrosexuality, which manifests itself in his appreciation for media generally associated with female patrons, such as the novel Eat, Pray, Love, the TV series Sex and the City and films featuring Sandra Bullock . This has led those close to him to opine that he is somewhat feminine (as in "The Closure Alternative"), and others to mistakenly conclude that he is homosexual (a theory his sister mentioned in "The Herb Garden Germination" that had been held by members of their family), which he typically denies (even asserting his metrosexuality in "The Transporter Malfunction"), but which Howard often teases him over . </P>

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