In “Aliens in America,” Kalyan was paired with co-star Dan Byrd, who plays Justin, Raja’s teenaged American host and social outcast. Kalyan’s Raja comes as a surprise to everyone when Justin’s mother Franny (Amy Pietz) takes it upon herself to help her unpopular son out by bringing in a “cool” foreign exchange student. But when the family warms to him, they all agree he should stay. Although Kalyan was not Pakistani, he researched heavily for the role, taking on the responsibility of representing an entire culture to viewers of the show.