The Patel Motel Story

Kit Johnson

04 Oct 2025 — 1 min read

The Patel Motel Story is a short documentary about how it is that 60% of U.S. hotels and motels are owned by immigrants from India and their descendants. To put that figure in context, Indian Americans make up just 1.5% of the total U.S. population.

The movie's title comes from the fact that many of the men and women who run these lodging ventures share a last name: Patel. As comic Hasan Minhaj has quipped: "They're all from one part of India, and they're all related."

Check out CNN's terrific coverage of this project, including a photo of Kanji Manchhu Desai, the "godfather of Indian-owned hotels in the US" who "helped a generation of immigrants find their way" in the hospitality business.

The movie is screening in Orlando, FL tomorrow, and it will be in Seattle and San Francisco next week. Check out their schedule.

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